Choice
by jlwilli3
Summary: In which Jacob Black becomes the man he was always destined to be, not Meyer's second best whipping boy. And Bella just can't get enough. Slightly AU, M, E/B and later J/B, later lemony goodness.
1. Chapter 1: Birthright

**dom·i·nant: ** : commanding, controlling, or prevailing over all others

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><p><strong>Jacob<strong>

At 3:00 in the morning, Jacob Black shot out of bed like a cannon.

The floorboards in his room creaked with each pace he crossed: _back_ and _forth_, _back_ and _forth_.

A fierce instinct, a _something,_ was crawling to the surface. All of a sudden, he found himself incredibly _angry,_ and he didn't know why.

He felt like punching his walls in, and the strange thing was that somehow he _knew_ that they would cave if he wanted them to. That he could knock the whole fucking house down, if he wanted.

And not only did he want to, he felt compelled to.

His body felt like it was caving in on itself, the fucking walls felt like they were closing in.

_T_oo_ tight. Too small, need to get out._

Whatever the _something_ was, it was repeating that mantra inside his frazzled brain.

He didn't understand what was going on, or why he was suddenly so angry. He'd been having a rather peaceful, rather pleasant sort of dream. He and Bella were riding the old motorbikes along the dirt road behind his house, and her smile lit up her whole face. The wind was whipping her hair behind her as she rode, and for_ once _the emptiness in her eyes was nothing but a ghost of the past. For once, she wasn't two seconds from returning to the ghost of a person she'd been in those first few months without _him._

The _him_ in question? Her bronze-haired, skinny ex-boyfriend, who seemed to have had all the cash and class in the world. Not only was that fucker Cullen undoubtedly _well-bred, _he still had a hold on Bella that even Jacob couldn't seem to break….

And suddenly, just the _thought _of that pompous son-of-a-bitch got Jacob even more heated. What was before a slight compulsion to _get out, _had turned into an unforgiving mandate. Uncontrollable, undeniable.

Just like that, he _ran. _

Popped open the window, jumped to the grass on his hands and knees. The night air was suddenly crisp; clean, a welcoming caress to his nose.

He could smell…earth. The strong odor of yesterday's rain, the blossoming apples in the tree just up the road. Hands over feet, he began to run – ran until he was deep into the forest that surrounded the reservation, ran until blades of grass and branches stuck to his hair. It was only then that he noticed his hair felt different, almost like..._fur. _

But he couldn't dwell on that, the forest earth beneath his feet – no, beneath his paws – felt so good, and right, that he decided it didn't matter. He wondered what Bella was doing. He'd bet she'd get a kick out of this, whatever this was – then something reared at the thought of Bella's name:

_Bella, Bella, BELLA_

...it growled, and Jacob was shocked as he realized that there was not just his own, but _two _voices in his head. What the _fuck_ was going on? When he focused harder, he realized that there was yet _another_ set of voices, so low at first that it just sounded like murmuring, but when he concentrated on it, grew louder.

_Man, you feel that? Looks like the little Alpha's finally pulled his head out of that leech-lover's ass long enough to join the party._

_Shut up, Paul! Jake? Jake, man, is that you? It's Embry, dude. _

Embry? _Embry? _

_Yeah, it's me and Paul. Man, Sam's got to get up for this, someone's got to go get him, I can't explain all this shit by myself – _

_Already on it, Em, don't get your panties in a bunch. _

And suddenly Jacob _saw_ Paul Lahote moving in the direction of Sam Uley's house, although he _couldn't have seen,_ he was standing right here...

_Effect of the pack mind, dude. You're seeing it through Paul, but you aren't really there, you know? _

"Emb –" Jacob tried to get out, except it came out as a little bark. He tried again. _Embry, what the FUCK is going on? What is this? _

_Yeah, it's a real mind trip, ain't it? Sam's going to explain it all to you when he gets here. Meanwhile, I'm coming up on your left. I'm shocked it took you this long to phase, and I'm suspecting Paul's got a point about Bella having something to do with that. Although I wouldn't have phrased it exactly how he did... _Embry was rambling.

Jacob had only caught one word. Bella? _Bella. BELLA. Bella-bella-bella-bella-bella..._

Great, now Embry had set the _thing _off again. Jacob shook his head and tried to focus. What he somehow _knew_ was Embry – a grey... dog? Wolf? with black spots on his back suddenly appeared in his vision. And Jacob soon saw himself through Embry's eyes.

Massive and russet-colored, he was at least twice Embry's size. He immediately took great satisfaction in that fact. Upon seeing Embry, a _shift_ happened, and Jacob felt something so instinctual that he didn't even question it – somehow he knew that Embry was now _his, and that fucker Sam Uley better not even question it. _

_This was his pack, his, HIS, by right, and by blood, and whoever doesn't like it can have their ass handed to them – MINE._

Wait, what the fuck? The alien thought stream was starting to wear him out; he was a big furry fucking Wolf, and apparently Paul, Embry and Sam were too

_Sam, that fucker, I'll LAY him OUT if he even THINKS about taking this pack from me, FUCK YOU, you – and _Whatever the something was, it was on a rampage.

Embry seemed aware of the shift too.

_Aw Jake, what did you do? Sam was supposed to be Alpha for a while, until you get used to all this – now I can't hear Paul anymore, I hope he can remember where we were, I can't even hear Sam –_

_Sam, that FUCKER..._

Wait. No. STOP.

_Embry, what's an Alpha? _

Although even as he asked, a part of him somehow _knew. It was now his, finally his burden to bear, his responsibility to lead. Generations upon generations had gone by, but one thing remained the same – their duty to protect the fathers, daughters, and sons of the tribe from the one enemy – the Cold Ones who walked the earth still, leeching away life wherever they went – _it suddenly dawned on him, now as plain as the newfound muzzle on his face that Cullen was his natural born enemy. He _wondered why he hadn't noticed it before._

There was always something about that kid he didn't like…

_Thank God! They're here! _Jacob was drawn out of his musings by Embry's excited yipping, hailing Paul and Sam to the clearing they were standing in. He turned his gaze to coolly regard Paul, the silver wolf, and just as quickly as he did, he felt the _shift _start to occur –

But something massive and black brought it to a screeching halt.

_**Jacob. **_

What Jacob guessed could only be Sam's wolf regarded him with an assessing gaze, taking on a stance that was as challenging as it was authoritative.

_**You aren't ready for this yet. Stand down. **_The Alpha order rolled off his lips as easy as pie, and just as easily Jacob's Wolf simultaneously denied it and became incensed by it.

_**Where do you get off, you stupid fuck? **_Jacob's Wolf shot right back, incensed at Sam's blocking of his acquisition of Paul. And Jacob saw Sam visibly tense under the command.

The Wolf had shot the retort before Sam had the chance to explain _what _it was he thought Jacob wasn't ready for. Although Jacob was aware that his Wolf, and thus he, too, already knew, he wanted to hear it from Sam himself.

Seeing Sam struggle and fail to break his command, it became clear as day to him that His Wolf would lead, evenif Jacob wasn't sure what leadership meant yet. Even if Jacob the man wasn't ready. The revelation that two entities existing in one body could be so at odds with each other terrified Jacob to his core, and he began a feeble attempt at rearing the beast in. For a split second the true Alpha Wolf disappeared from Jacob's psyche and he prepared to kneel and submit to the black dominant Wolf's edict...

_That's right, baby Alpha, you know you aren't even _close _to being ready to do this shit... _Paul's leer rang loudly in Jacob's mind, as the separate Packs had again joined in Jacob's moment of submission.

Submission was then forgotten as and man and beast united in rage at the mere thought that the Beta would deem them incapable. Jacob _yanked_ at Paul's Wolf in retaliation, _daring _the fucker Sam to do anything about it.

And when the true Alpha Wolf felt just the slightest opposition from the son of Levi Uley, he lunged, snarling, at his throat.


	2. Chapter 2: For Charlie's Sake

_A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, guys! Keep them coming!_

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><p><strong>Bella<strong>

Bella was staring at sharp objects again.

It had become a habit of hers over the last few weeks. If she was honest with her herself - which she rarely was these days - she'd admit that staring at the blades, razors, knives, and pens was more than an odd habit, it was an indulgence.

She saw them as the saving grace that would finally knock her out of her permanently numbed state, for however briefly. If only she could just get up the nerve to _use them._ So far, the obsession had only gotten as far as just looking, and fondling the sharp objects briefly.

The object of her fascination today was Charlie's shaving kit.

It wasn't that she was borderline suicidal – _she really wasn't. _She couldn't be. Because part of her, however _insane_ that part was, had convinced herself that somehow he'd be back for her. And she didn't want to end up _dead_ before she could give him the chance.

_But no one said anything about enduring a little pain._

She had flirted dangerously for weeks with the idea of inflicting a simple cut to her finger, just to see if she would hear her mind's perfect rendering of his voice again - _Bella, love, DON'T _– but had chickened out every time.

Still, it didn't make the compulsion to do so any less potent.

Stroking the handle of Charlie's yellow clippers, she let herself think about the last time he'd spoken to her. It was nearly _a_ _week_ _ago_, when she and Jacob had rode the dirt bikes on the path near his house in La Push. While hanging out with Jacob had been great, as always, she couldn't escape the craving for her secret addiction. Each time she'd heard _his_ voice, like she had that day, the pain in her chest – far more severe than any physical pain she could inflict on herself - was somewhat pacified.

But with each passing day that she _didn't, _the pain reared its ugly head again to punish her, and more brutally.

She really needed to find something other than masochistic fantasies to occupy her time.

Putting away Charlie's blades and slamming the bathroom cabinet shut, she mechanically washed her face, got dressed, and threw her hair in a ponytail. She didn't care enough to remember what she grabbed to put on. She then followed the smell of burnt bacon downstairs to the kitchen, and sat at the table. It was Charlie's third attempt this week to cook. She stared at him, shuffling his feet awkwardly at the stove.

For him to go to these lengths, she must _really_ look like crap.

"Dad, you didn't have to –" she started, at the same time Charlie said, "Nah, it's nothing, kid. You know, you don't have to do all the cooking around here. I should be doing more to help." He quickly sat down a plate of the too crispy bacon, scrambled eggs, and two plain slices of bread - "Bread's untoasted, just like you like it" – and handed her a fork and a napkin. She attempted the closest thing to a smile that she had left these days - "Thanks, Dad" – and began to poke the food around the plate with the fork.

She did this for a few minutes, until Charlie, pushing his own plate aside, began to clear his throat uncomfortably.

"You know, Bells….Bella…" he began, running a hand through his messy hair.

She looked up slowly.

"You know I care about you a lot, right? More than my life."

Oh, God. Where was he going with this? "Yeah, Dad, I know."

"I know you've been having a hard time of things, lately, and I suspect its mostly got to do with that Cullen kid –"

Oh, no. He was going _there._

"Dad, if you don't mind, I really, _really,_ don't want to talk about it." She held his gaze for a split second longer, to make sure he knew she meant that _that_ conversation was done, and attempted to distract him by chewing on two bites of eggs.

Charlie raised his eyebrow at the sight of the fork actually going in her mouth, but was undeterred. "I'm not trying to get into specifics, Bells, but don't you think that, even though things didn't work out with the two of you, you can still, um, get out the house, hang out with friends, maybe even –" he cleared his throat again – "eat a little more?"

Huh. Charlie was more perceptive then he let on. "I do hang out with my friends, Dad. I was just with Jacob last week," she said, deftly ignoring the last half of the question.

"That was a week ago, and that's just Jacob. He's great, but didn't you used to have other friends? What's new with that Jennifer girl?"

"Her name's Jessica."

"Yeah, her. Why don't you ever hang out with her anymore?"

She couldn't answer his question with the whole truth – the truth being that she'd barely even looked at her friends since _they_ left – but she could improvise. Jessica had been giving her the side eye even before she fell into her depression because Jessica wanted Mike, and Mike wanted Bella, even though Bella was with…_don't think the name._ "She's mad at me, because of Mike Newton."

"Ah, I see. Kid's hung up on you, I'm guessing?"

Charlie was _really_ on his game today with the intuitiveness. "Yeah, I guess. Something like that." She didn't offer anything else.

"Look, Bella, I'm not saying you gotta go out partying every night. But one guy isn't worth this kind of reaction. Try to remember your other friends," Charlie was staring at her intently now, willing her to listen to reason. "You had a great life before this guy breezed in, and you _can _still have a good life even though he's not around anymore."

Funny, she couldn't seem to remember her life prior to his arrival, so she had no idea whether it was good or not. She guessed she'd just have to take Charlie's word for it.

"Sure thing, Dad. I'll call Jacob today. And when I get to school, I'll ask Angela if she wants to hang out this weekend," she said, hoping that would end the conversation.

Charlie wheezed out a breath of relief she hadn't realized he'd been holding. "That's great to hear, Bells," He got up and put his plate in the sink. "I'm headed to the station. See you later this evening." She nodded at him until he headed out.

Hm. It had been a while since she'd seen Jacob – and when she thought past the misery for just a moment, she realized that she missed him. She missed his sunny smiles, the way he made her do the closest thing she did to laughing these days. She wondered why she hadn't heard from him much this week – but then again, _she _hadn't called, either – so it's not like she could complain.

She decided that that was what she would do. She would call Jacob this afternoon, and then, they would hang out. The idea excited her enough that she decided to even make good on her promise to talk to Angela – maybe not go anywhere with her outside of school, but she could at least talk to her. She decided that Angela was the only human girlfriend she had who was actually enjoyable to be around. She could talk to her, for Charlie's sake.

And when the school day was over, she would head to La Push for the sake of her own sanity.


	3. Chapter 3: Patrol

**Jacob**

The Wolf was restless.

Not one; not two, but _three _new vamps were in the area, and the Pack had been a little too late to save the last two innocents who were bled dry.

These Cold Ones seemed to work in tandem, as most covens do, and they seemed to have at least one strategist on the team. The scent trails surrounding the last kill came from three different directions. Though all the leeches' scents were a disgusting mix of rotting flesh and syrupy sweetness, Jacob's nose could tell the difference between the three – the taller, blond one had a slight turpentine-y twinge to his scent; the shorter, dreadlocked one had a hint of what smelled like formaldehyde; and smelling the female made him feel like he stuck his nose in a vat of ammonia. What was worse, the female's scent was most concentrated at both of the male victims' crotches – which meant she _played_ with her food before she ate it. _Sickening, _he thought.

So they liked to corner their prey, fine. If they ever cornered the Pack, they'd find a lot more then they bargained for. It was better to lure the vamps to the territory they were most familiar with... s_et two wolves in the middle of the forest clearing, draw them in, and then ambush with the rest of the Pack from behind._

He calculated the moves like chess in his head.

It was more than a little off-putting, how _good_ he was at this whole leader thing. The Wolf and him were in agreement on how to conduct Pack business more and more with each passing day – so much so that he had trouble distinguishing just _who_ was calling the shots. He'd never been this calculating before; never planned ahead more than a day. Shit, before all this crap, his hardest daily decision was choosing between his Wii and Playstation 3 consoles. Although he liked the new role he'd been burdened with, the son of Ephraim Black was beginning to feel like he was losing himself.

Bringing that nagging feeling up with his father was pointless. The old man nearly cried with joy after Jacob has phased and accepted his birthright, the Pack seamlessly pledging allegiance to the rightful Alpha. Billy was so much about _tribe pride, _and _duty, _and _walking in the forefathers' footsteps._ He couldn't see that his son was struggling to remember just _who _he was before some mystic spirit mandated that he morph into a giant dog.

Billy had only insisted that "the spirits know best," as he put it, and that he should turn to his newfound inner monologue with questions about maintaining his sense of self. But sometimes he didn't _want_ to know every thing the Wolf had to say. Whenever he consulted with that _thing_ on other issues, he got the answers he needed, sure. But after each "conversation," he felt just a little more lost. The Wolf and him were in agreement so often that he wasn't sure if he came out those talks _as himself._

He sighed, and tied the band that he now used to carry his clothes when phased around his left ankle. He couldn't think about this now. He, Paul and Sam had patrol in less than an hour. Sam had just healed up enough after their previous _exchange_, and was able to get out again.

Jacob had to give it to him, Sam and his Wolf put up a hell of fight when challenging him for the top spot.

_But his best just wasn't enough..._ not when it came to battling the Alpha. While Sam had fought him with every bit of his humanity, Jacob the man was merely a spectator in the tussle of tooth and claw. His Wolf had completely taken over, and in the frenzy to claim what was rightfully his, almost took out a chunk of Sam's side when the older Wolf didn't submit. It was all Jacob could do to stop the beast from completely decimating him.

Luckily for them both, Sam saw the wisdom in submission, and stuck his neck out to Jacob in a gesture as old as time, his Wolf finally silent. The _shift_ occurred seconds later, and the new Pack was complete.

He wasn't sure when he or his Wolf, or both, decided that Sam was to serve as the Pack's Beta, but both of them knew that when Sam stood on his right, and Paul on his left, it felt _right. _Although, Embry was more than a little pissed that Jacob hadn't chosen him as Beta, or at least as Third. Instead, he'd been ranked just in front of Jared, who was so enamored with his newly found imprint - a quiet girl named Kim - that he couldn't even think straight, much less hold any responsibility in the new Pack.

_Imprinting. _He pulled on his cut-off shorts forcefully as he thought about the concept. While he found Jared's sudden attraction to a girl he'd never before thought twice about pretty _fucking _weird, he couldn't help but feel some hope for his own situation.

Although the official gravity-moving, earth-shattering event hadn't happened to him yet, he was 99 percent sure his Wolf would choose Bella, given that whenever he or someone else mentioned the name, the thing wouldn't shut the hell up. Nearly a week had gone by since he last her, but the compulsion to do so had been getting stronger since that first phase.

As for seeing her, and subsequently _telling _her about all this, he had no ideas on how he would swing _that _one. Yeah, he'd been in love with Bella for who knows how long, but for at least a year now, Bella had been in love with someone else... and just like that, he _cut_ that thought train off and left his house in a run to meet with the guys.

Because if he didn't have time to analyze all the ways this wolf gig was making him lose his identity, he _definitely didn't have time, or _patience, or amount of sanity, _to analyze what the hell Bella possibly saw in something that was dead._

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><p>Sam and Paul were running west along the Rez when they felt the ripple of Jacob's phase.<p>

_Running late, oh Mighty Alpha? We were starting to worry, _Paul said. Running up to where they were, Jacob was close enough to catch the wolfy smirk on Paul's face. Jacob sighed. In the last week, he'd learned more about Paul then he wanted to know.

The main thing was that the guy worked hard to keep up his act as the perpetual asshole. The reasons behind that façade, as Jacob had recently learned, were vast and far-reaching, and mostly sad.

_Hey, hey now, don't cry for me, _Paul directed at him bitterly, picking up the wavelength of his thoughts.

_Don't need your pity or anyone else's, I've made it this long without anyone, and I'll make it as long as I need to..._His thought train was going in the way of that stubborn independence that eventually turned into self-pity.

Jacob respectfully tuned him out.

_Sorry, man. _He grumbled Paul's way. _Sam, anything new?_

_No, not a trail. Think we should head east next? _

_Yeah, that'd probably be best. After that, we'll check the north and south ends, and then we'll do a few turns around Forks. _Since the leeches had gone, that side of the line was fair game, and it wouldn't be a bad thing to circle around Bella's house a few times – _bella BELLA BELLA BELLLA BELLA..._

Damn. He'd started it up again.

_Aw, come on, man, back to the Bella monologue? For a sap who hasn't even _seen_ her after phasing yet, your Wolf sure knows what it wants. _Paul commented. _When are you just going to get it over with and go see her?_

_It's complicated,_ he thought. To say the least.

_Complicated isn't the word._ _She seems like she was all set to ride off into the sunset with that bloodsucker, dude, _Paul said, genuinely concerned for his Alpha.

_Don't remind me._

Just thinking about that entire situation pissed him off, and he needed a clear head right now. He paused to lap up some water in the small pond they were passing, and then the three headed on.

Sam was uncharacteristically quiet. _Sam, what's up? _

_Nothing, man, just thinking about her. _

_You and Leah still having trouble?_

They could both hear his undirected thoughts. _Yeah, because she doesn't know what's going on, she's not my…imprint, so I can't tell her. She hates me, thinks I don't want her anymore…_

Sam and his one-time fiancé, Leah Clearwater, had kept up their relationship for the last year, despite Sam being unable to tell her why he was disappearing off into the night for hours at a time. He was also too tired on weekends to do much of anything other than sleep, much less hang with her.

The strain on the relationship was enough that Leah had called off their engagement, convinced Sam was sleeping around. To top it off, Sam was in a constant internal debate over whether or not he _should_ just break it off with her, since the wooey-hooey powers that be had apparently already decided that they weren't supposed to be together.

_Sam, you know you shouldn't make any decisions based off of something that may never happen, _Jacob directed at him quietly.

_Yeah, but in the off chance it does, what the hell are we going to do?_ Sam turned to him, the eyes in the great big black face sad. _Two members of the Pack have already imprinted or shown signs that they will. Those are better odds then we thought. _

He had a point. The elders, and all of tribe lore, had said that imprinting was supposed to be rare. But apparently, that was bullshit too.

_You and Lee have loved each other for years. Have a little faith in your bond, man. Do you really think that some mystic crap is going to tear that apart so quickly? _Jacob continued.

_Yeah, dude, quit being a fucking pussy and go get your girl back, _Paul chimed in.

Sam chuckled at Paul's abrupt advice, in spite of himself. They were headed back to the northern end of the reservation, towards Jacob's house, when all three wolves picked up a very familiar, very human, whiff.

_Speaking of girls, I think Bella Swan has decided that she's tired of waiting for you to make up your mind about what you want to do, oh fearless leader, _Sam thought, smirking at Jacob.

Damn. _Damn._ And Jacob phased back to human, pulling his shorts on, before his Wolf's _bella BELLA BELLA _drone could start up again.

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><p><em>AN: For all you Emily-lovers, there __WILL be an Emily in this story; however, she won't take on the role that she did in Meyer's world. We'll see more of her later. _

_Please review! As I've mentioned on my profile, I'm working Beta-less for the time being, so your suggestions and criticisms are much appreciated. _


	4. Chapter 4: Twin Souls

**Bella**

She had just pulled up to his house when she saw him.

Wearing nothing but a pair of cutoff pants, he looked _bigger _since the last time she'd seen him.

But that couldn't be the case, because it had only been a week. He looked…well, he looked _mighty _good, if she allowed herself to admit it. She couldn't stop staring at the new grooves and curves in his well-chiseled chest; she wondered vaguely if this was the first time she'd seen him without his shirt on?

No, that couldn't be right, because he'd taken it off to dab her forehead that day she bled after crashing on her bike. She remembered noticing his muscles, which was where the _sort of beautiful_ comment came from.

If he was sort of beautiful then, he was Adonis incarnate now. A week away had made a hell of a lot of difference.

She jumped out of the truck, still gaping, but now at the _extremely _well-defined arms that were arriving closer and closer to her; again, where had _those _come from? She felt heat rise to her cheeks.

She wasn't supposed to be thinking of her best friend this way. Hell, he could have been sick this last week for all she knew, and she couldn't stop eye-raping him. She hadn't even tore her shameless gaze away long enough to say hello.

"Jake, how have you been? I hadn't heard from you, and I was worried," she choked out, tearing her eyes from his chest and focusing on his face. Embarrassed, she looked everywhere but his eyes, which caused her to notice the abrupt chop of his hair.

"Bells," was all he said, and quietly.

_Why did his voice sound so different?_ a part of her mind wondered, before she laid into him.

"Jacob Black! You didn't! Your hair was _beautiful,_ and you cut it off!" She closed the distance between them in her accusation and ran her fingers through his new, short mane. "Why, Jake? I _loved your hair!" _She pouted, then immediately became shocked that that the words came out of her mouth.

When had she ever been this bold?

"Bella," the new, deeper Jacob voice said again.

"_And you got a TATTOO!" _She practically screamed, noticing the tribal symbol now permanently etched on his dense left bicep.

_"You…_you…it was Sam, wasn't it? He got to you, didn't he? I'll…_I'll kill him!_" Bella's entire face was red in her rage, recalling with perfect clarity a conversation they'd had just weeks earlier:

"_I don't like the way Sam looks at me…"_

"_All the others, they dropped out of school, shaved their heads, and got these weird tattoos on their arms…."_

"_I think it's some kind of a cult…."_

"Bella, calm down," Jacob said, and there was a hint of something Bella couldn't quite detect in his voice.

She wasn't having it. "_Where is he? He can't do this to you! Not you!"_

Just then, she realized they weren't alone.

"Speak of the devil, and he shall appear," Bella snarled in Sam and Paul's direction, both of whom were trying very hard not to laugh.

It incensed her all the more.

In seconds, she was crossing the steps that separated them both, and she had her hand out, ready to strike the man she feared had taken _her Jacob_ away from her.

"_Where the hell do you get off? _I don't know what you've done to him, whether it's drugs, or brainwashing, or what, but you leave him alone, _right this instant, _you hear me? My father is the Chief of Police in Forks, and I'll have you thrown in jail _faster than you can fucking blink." _

She had gotten all in Sam's face, the uncharacteristic swearing rolling like water off her tongue. And the _fucker _still had the nerve to have that stupid shit-eating _grin_ on his face.

"Oh, I think I'm going to like you," was all he said, before Bella hauled off and slapped him with everything she had.

It felt like slapping a wall.

"What are you, made of stone?" she said angrily, wringing her stinging hand out before putting her fingers in her mouth.

So quickly she thought she'd imagined it, his shape _blurred_ for a second, and then returned to normal, the huge grin absent from his face when he did. Suddenly, she heard a very inhuman growl, something that reminded her of a time when monsters and magic were commonplace in her world…

And with that thought, she found herself hugging her chest again.

_No, _she mentally told the pain. _Not here. Have to save Jacob._

Thoughts of her past and a future now forever lost to her would have to wait until later.

"_**Sam. Paul. Leave. Now." **S_he realized then that the growl came from the deep, rumbling voice behind her.

_What the hell was going on?_

Just like that, the other two hulking men turned around and left.

"Bella." The strange, new voice said again. She had yet to turn around.

"_Bells." _It said again, almost pleadingly. Slowly, she turned to face him, looking full on into his eyes for the first time that day.

It felt like she'd been hit with a lightening bolt, punched in the stomach, and had a bucket of cold water thrown on her, all at once.

Suddenly she _saw _him, really _saw him, _for the man that he was; loving, caring, there for her when she needed him.

She saw him ten, twenty years down the line, raising their children with her; growing old with her; and eventually, dying with her. And the _warmth – _she began to feel a delicious heat down her spine, in her stomach, in her fingers and toes. The hole in her chest hadn't closed; she'd simply forgotten that it existed in the first place.

She hadn't realized it before this moment, but her whole life had consisted of not really belonging. An outsider with Renee and Phil in Arizona; an outsider at school; and no matter how much the Cullens tried to make her feel at home, an outsider among god-like creatures in the vampire world.

Looking into Jacob's eyes, she felt like she was finally home.

_And she never wanted to leave. _

The look on his face told her he'd die before he'd let her – his expression was almost an exact replica of her feelings, and she guessed of her face.

Except, there was an added twinge of… _unwavering devotion_.

She suddenly knew..._s_he_ would never have to be alone again. _She wasn't sure how she knew that, but she did, and the realization brought tears to her eyes.

Jacob, his own black eyes shining, reached up to wipe them away. She thought the experience that had happened seconds earlier was the most amazing event in her life.

The instant his hand touched her face, she realized she couldn't have been more wrong.

The warmth that she'd felt instantly turned into unbearable, undeniable, _heat...s_he began to feel a pool of moisture between her legs.

She leaned into his hand, grabbing it automatically and pressing it into her face; his fingertips sending flames into her skin like live wires. His reaction was just as instant; before she knew it, his arms were wrapped around her; she couldn't see, feel, or breathe anything that _wasn't _Jacob, and she was sure she'd never want to again.

His mouth was wet against her neck, peppering open-mouthed kisses there and down her shoulders.

"_Oh God, Bells. _Fuck, Bella_. Oh God."_ He was murmuring incoherently, but that wasn't the only sound in the air.

She hadn't realized it up until this second, but she was _moaning,_ and not quietly.

"_Mmm…Jake…please…need it,"_ a voice that wasn't hers said. Her legs had opened, and she was grinding her crotch up against the prominent tent that was now visible in his cutoff shorts.

What was _she doing? _Before she knew it, he had hoisted her legs around his waist, and he was carrying her into the forest, kissing her chest all the way.

"Yeah, this shit is definitely underrated…._God…_I hadn't expected it to be like _this. _I just want to take you _NOW, and _I can _feel_ you want it too…" he mumbled, looking up at her with hooded eyes.

"_I do…_but oh God, Jake, what's happening? I don't…_fuccckkkk…." _she let out as he licked her ear. When had her vocabulary gotten this vulgar? She suddenly looked around and realized that they were already deep into the forest, far away from prying eyes.

_And that was just how she wanted it. _

"I do, but I don't understand…" She struggled to maintain her sanity, but at the same time struggled to undo his pants.

"Wait…._no…_I don't want you to not know what's going on, and I _promise _you, I _will _explain…but first, I need to know something," Jacob stopped his assault on her neck and attempted to calm down, sinking to his knees with her still in his arms on the wet forest floor.

_Anything, _for him.

"Anything."

"When you looked at me, what did you feel? I think I know, but….I need…"

"You need to hear me say it."

She propped herself up so she could look into his eyes.

"When I looked at you, I felt…like safe, happy, warm, and…like I wouldn't have to worry about anything anymore," Bella breathed. "Just…._secure._ And I saw us, in my head, years down the line. I think…I'm _pretty sure…_that it means we are supposed to be together. But…I don't understand it still. Why am I only feeling this now? This has never happened before."

He took a breath before answering.

"It's called imprinting," he said, tracing the lines in her left hand with his fingers. Each touch was like a jolt to the live electric wires now running through her body. "It's…it's what we do when we find our twin souls," he explained.

"Twin souls? Like soul mates? And you say we, like, the Quileute?"

"Not quite like soul mates. Our legends say that a person can have many soul mates, over many lifetimes, but only one other half of their soul exists. People confuse the two, but while soul mate relationships prepare you for your meeting with your other half, they don't compare to it. And…and when I say we, yes, I do mean the Quileute, but…only some of us," he said.

He seemed somewhat unsure.

"So you're my other half? Why do only some of you imprint?"

"Because only some of us can mutate into giant wolves."

Bella burst out laughing.

"Good one, Jake. Now, really, why do only some of you imprint? Why not everyone?"

"I'm not joking, Bells." Suddenly the familiar, sunny face that she knew was replaced by a hard mask.

"Is it _really_ so hard to believe? I mean, considering _everything_ else you know to be true," he accused, eyes narrowed.

"Wha…But Jake, that's impossible! So you're saying you're a werewolf? And I'm your…your _freaky werewolf mate?_"

"Oh, so _now _its freaky? Two seconds ago you were gushing about how it was the best experience of your life!"

"It _was! _But Jake, whatever it was, you _don't have _to make things up to get me to believe in it," she said emphatically. "I believe in what happened without you blaming it on some mystic crap."

"But Bella, _that's what it is." _He stood up suddenly, brushing the blades of grass from his shorts. He pulled them down a second later; his manhood, while not as prominent as it once was, still _impressive _in its size.

"_J-Jake, wait, _no, we were still talking…I don't want to do it yet…" she protested, unable to tear her eyes away from his body all the same.

"_No_, Bella. Not that," he said with a slight smile. "I'm going to show you what you can't seem to believe." He stepped back a few feet from her, eyes locked on hers and suddenly serious. _"No matter what, don't stop looking at my eyes." _

She nodded.

Then, his shape blurred, much like Sam's had done earlier. Where Jacob had once been, a _massive, _russet brown wolf stood in his place.

Bella swallowed thickly, seconds away from going into shock. She focused intently on his eyes, which hadn't changed throughout the process, and she found herself starting to calm down.

This _was _Jake, after all.

She timidly stepped forward, hands outstretched to touch his fur. It was the softest pelt she'd ever felt, yet still impossibly thick. The Wolf leaned into her touch, humming contently.

"Oh, Jake…it _is _you…but why have you kept this from me all this time? How long have you been like this?" She wrapped her arms around his massive neck, burying her face into his fur.

_Thank God_ she now didn't feel the impossible sexual attraction she'd felt earlier. Not while he was in _this _form. _That _would have been a deal-breaker.

She felt a subtle _hum_, and then before she made the next blink, Jacob the man was now wrapped around her. His arms circled her waist.

"I've been this way for about a week now. But the others – Sam, Paul, Jared, and Embry – started before me. Sam was the first. He started about a year ago," he said quietly. He was silent for a few more seconds, stroking her face, his expression unfathomable.

"Jake, what's wrong? Honestly, I really don't care that you turn into a wolf, a dog…hell I wouldn't care if you sprouted wings. Trust me, I'm good with weird," she said, suddenly bitter.

"Yeah, _tell me about it." _

His voice was as hard, if not harder, then hers.

"Tell me this, Bella. What were your long-term plans with your ex-boyfriend? Were you going to let him watch you get old over the next ten, twenty years, while he stayed the same? Or were you going to fake your own death and leave Charlie to mourn his only child? Would you have left me without my best friend, and, as we both now know, other half?"

His hurt, a mirror of her own, coursed through her body. She clutched her chest involuntarily, and for a moment, she struggled to breathe. She guessed shared pain was an effect of the imprint. She bit her lip, trying not to cry.

"I don't know what you're talking about." she said mechanically, avoiding his gaze.

"Oh bull_shit_, Bella. Why do you think we exist? We protect humans from the likes of _them," _he spat out bitterly. "I know _all about _you and your vamp boyfriend. The _Cullens _are the reason I'm like this –" he indicated his perfect, massive new physique – "in the first place."

She closed her eyes; this wasn't happening. Jacob was not a werewolf who was mortal enemies with her ex-vampire boyfriend; if she shut them long enough it would all go away. Her silence only caused Jacob's pain to intensify, thereby causing her pain to increase.

…Too much _too much too much…_

"Vamp still got your tongue?" he asked bitterly. "You couldn't lie to me before this, don't even _think_ you can get away with it now. Why are you still defending him? _He left you,_ in the fucking forest, like you were nothing. He doesn't deserve your…your perverted sense of _loyalty," _he spat out.

She was falling, falling fast into a sea of both Jacob's and her emotions. After drawing two haggard breaths to unsuccessfully steady herself, the words fought their way out of her.

"Because…_Because I love him!" _she screamed; eyes still closed, pulling at her hair.

The emotions she'd been fighting like mad to hide for the last few months - a potent mix of numbing hurt and searing rage - were now bubbling to the surface.

"_I love him now, loved him then. With everything I had, and it _WASN'T, ENOUGH!" Tears began to flow down her face in waves. Still screaming and sobbing nonsensically, she began to rock back and forth on the forest floor.

It was true, all of it. Edward had left her; dropped her like she was nothing. Because she _was _nothing. She was a pathetic little human trying to carve out a place in a world much grander than she could ever hope to be.

It was one of the reasons she begged him, over and over, to change her. She knew that if she stayed as she was, she _couldn't _hold his attention for long. She was willing to give up her life, her family, her friends, her _humanity_ for this god-like being, and him just _leaving _in spite of it all was the thanks she got.

It _fucking sucked. _

She couldn't stop rocking and crying; wrapping her arms around her middle did nothing to stop the internal pain. Jacob put his arms around her, silent. He had meant what he'd said. It partly stemmed from anger, and partly from an attempt to break her out of her funk over the bloodsucker.

But he hadn't meant to hurt her _like this. _

His heart was breaking like he had gotten dumped. "Bella, honey, I'm so sorry…I didn't mean to…"

She shook her head, cutting him off.

"I love him, and I _hate him_," she decided, wiping the tears that refused to quit streaming down her face. "I hate him so much, Jake. He took everything from me."

"I know, Bells. I know," he said, kissing her temple, over and over.

"I know I hurt you, too. But _someone _had to say _something_…

"You were so busy mourning Cullen that you forgot to _live."_

She knew. Everyday, every waking moment, had been a struggle.

"I just…I just had my entire life planned out with him, you know?" she said wistfully, her red eyes glossing at the thought.

"We were going to…we were going to live forever. And it was going to be _perfect."_ She turned to face him then, willing him to understand. "I was going to finally belong somewhere. And be beautiful, and not ever die. Someone loved me enough to give me all of that.

"Can't you see how intoxicating it was; how difficult it was to turn down?"

His eyes narrowed, gaze turning fierce. "Bella, you _are beautiful." _She shook her head and turned away, afraid to listen to his words.

"Baby, look at me."

He grabbed her face and turned it to his, visibly shuddering at the electric current that went through them both as he did so.

"_You are beautiful, just _like this. Even though your bottom lip juts out bigger than your top one does; and even though your face gets all scrunched up when you're thinking too hard.

"You are beautiful now; you will be even more beautiful forty years from now. You will die beautiful and well-loved by your children and grandchildren; and not be trapped in an _existence _where you need to suck the life out of someone else to feel alive again…

"And you _do _belong, right here, right now. You _belong with me." _He pulled her into his lips and kissed her, until they both saw stars.

That night was the first night in nearly a year that when she fell asleep, she didn't dream of Edward Cullen.


	5. Chapter 5: Agreement

**Bella**

Bella woke up with a start, rubbing her eyes frantically and swishing her head from side to side as she tried to get her bearings.

She had woken up in the same house she'd lived in for the last year and a half, but now, everything felt different. Everything _was _different.

She was different.

Although Jake had done a pretty good job explaining to her what the hell had happened between them yesterday, it still didn't make it feel any less weird, or any less _fast._ In less than an hour, they'd jumped from zero to 150, and were now continuing on the fast track to forever, whatever that meant. A clawing feeling in her gut reminded her of just how different things were. Something inside of her was urging her to find Jake, to mold her body around him on the forest floor just as she'd done the day before. Her mind began to focus solely on yesterday's events, particularly the part where his tongue ran in circles on her neck and she'd let out guttural moans that before then were foreign to her.

Just thinking about his mouth on hers, his hands caressing her breasts...her panties were soaked, and it wasn't yet seven in the morning.

_That_ part of the rapid pacing she'd rather enjoyed. The heartfelt, no holds barred conversation hit home for her as well, but it was still shocking to her how quickly Jake was able to just _get_ her.

Not that he'd never _gotten_ her before.

When they were working on those bikes, he could remember each time he finished her sentences, or knew what she wanted to do that day, before she even knew herself. Everything with him was easy, even then. But this time, it was different. _He _was different.

Before, when he'd been "fixing" her, the only responses he'd given her about the _Edward_ situation were the occasional looks of pity she'd catch in his eyes when she'd space out, or when she'd wrap her arms around herself like she was trying to hold herself together. Generally, he cautiously did his best to avoid opening the vampy can of worms altogether, instead allowing his presence to be the one bright spot in her Edward-less existence.

But yesterday - with all caution to the window - he said all the right things to make her realize how much of a selfish _bitch_ she was.

_Were you going to fake your own death and leave Charlie to mourn his only child? _

She couldn't imagine taking anything away from Charlie. Charlie, the man who'd given all he had to her mother, to her, only to have Renee throw it back in his face and tell him it wasn't good enough..._Sounds familiar,_ she bitterly thought. Renee had held the _queen of self-absorption _world title for the last 18 years. Not only had she put her own needs and wants in front of the man she claimed to love, she'd left the child they'd created to practically fend for herself for the majority of her life. Bella felt like she'd been cooking and cleaning the house since before she could read, while Renee was off running with whatever man suited her fickle fancy at the time, or indulging in her eccentric hobbies._  
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Was it possible that she'd taken a page from her mother's book of clueless self-interest? _Like mother like daughter, _she'd thought bitterly. When Edward was around, he was all she could see. Jacob had made that fact painfully obvious yesterday, but hadn't he been making it obvious from day one? He'd definitely been interested in her since she'd come back to Forks, but she was so caught up in her love for Edward that she refused to acknowledge it.

Even then with Jacob; everything was easy, natural, she thought. With Edward, she was constantly fighting to reconcile her mere mortal self with his ethereal beauty, unnatural grace, and timeless appearance. She never felt beautiful when she stood by his side, always comparing human imperfections to him and his family's perfect physique.

Jake, on the other hand, made her feel beautiful for her imperfections, rather than in spite of them. What's more, she didn't have to change anything with Jacob...she would have had to give up her life to adequately fit in with Edward.

But despite that, she fell hard for him.

She still did love him, if she was honest with herself; a confession Jake so efficiently pulled out of her the other day. She wasn't sure what it was that she and Edward shared, and she knew unequivocally that what she and Jake had now (and in fact, had always had) was..._more._

But... there was still something there, right? There had to be a _reason_ she'd completely fallen apart in the last few months. What was it? Jacob had mentioned something about twin souls...the ultimate connection, the final pairing of two halves of a whole.

Was Edward her soulmate (or one of them), and Jacob, her final destination?

_Would you have left me without my best friend, and, as we both now know, other half?_

Would she? Before Jacob imprinted, there wasn't a doubt that she would have. Why was she so blind? Why did it take the imprint to knock the wind out of her to realize that what she already had was perfect? If Edward came back now, begging on his knees for her forgiveness, she was sure of one thing - she would not, and could not, return to him.

She raked a brush through her hair and proceeded to brush her teeth, still thinking about Jacob. After he gave her the verbal ass-kicking she apparently so obviously needed, he enveloped her in his arms and assured her of her specialness; the fact that she _deserved_ so much more than she'd been given.

Then, that _fucking _kiss...

She could still remember the taste of him...how it felt as he ran his tongue along the inside of her lips, then circled her own tongue with his. For a split second she battled for dominance in the kiss, trying to make _him _feel as good as he made _her__, _but all that went to shit the minute he forcefully_ sucked on her tongue _and demanded her submission. Which she was all too happy to give; she remembered how she spread her legs for him instinctively the minute he asserted himself. She let out a quiet moan at the thought of it, as a fresh wave of arousal leaked from her center.

It hadn't slipped her conscious mind that there must be something inherent in this imprinting business that willingly turned her into a quivering, moaning, submissive mess whenever he came too close. Yet just as that thought was there, there was another sense that encompassed her entire being that said that, _no,_ things had always been like this, she'd always loved and wanted him, in the most _intimate _ways possible. For as long as she can remember she'd wanted him to spread her legs and _take her...wait, _NO.

Imprint talking, not reality. And as seductively true as the imprinted part of her brain sounded, she needed to get back to reality_...focus, Bella. Focus. _She let out a deep breath, rinsing her mouth and exiting the bathroom to throw on clothes. Before this, she'd been pathetically failing to get over Edward. She had _not_ thought of Jacob that way, dammit; or if she had, she was pretty sure her thoughts of him centered around gratefulness and familial love, but nowhere near the sexual realm.

That brought her to the conversation she needed to have with Jacob today...she needed him to not be sure, and to not be the confident know-it-all that he was yesterday. This was all too fast, dammit, and she needed him to admit it. They needed to take things slow, because that was what couples did. They didn't rush into shit and run off to fuck in the forest at the first damn opportunity they got...well, unless you were big on the sleaze. They _dated_, and they talked, and they shared things with each other, and they got to know one another first. That was how it worked.

Something told her that all of this would be a lot harder to believe when she saw him again.

Speaking of seeing him, where was he? Why didn't he just haul her off to his house and let her sleep in his bed? Billy wouldn't mind; hell he'd probably be _ecstatic _that they were finally coupled up; and Charlie, knowing it was Jake, wouldn't bat an eye. The idea of sleeping away from him seemed absurd; why had she even agreed to it in the first place? Now she had to wake up, thinking about the things he did to her, without him here to help relieve the tension those thoughts created...

Ok, it was official. She was going insane.

She _was not_ going to be the girlfriend (imprint? Soul mate?) that clung to their...significant other's every move. She was going to be independent. She was going to remember that the way the world worked when Jake wasn't the center of it. She was going to...she was going to open her window, because Jake was outside her house and wanted to come up.

She turned from the closet she'd been digging in and threw open the window with all the strength she had. She didn't know _how_ she knew he was out there, she just _knew. _And there he was, shirtless and wet; the soft rain outside hitting his chiseled torso in all the right spots, sliding down his neck and shoulders and slipping down the ridges of his abs..._oh my God, he is... delectable. _How did I get so lucky? The look she was giving him must have been comical, because he raised up the corners of his mouth into a smirk._ I'm coming up_, the look on his face said.

She stepped away from the window to let him in.

He climbed the tree that wasn't far from her window more swiftly then she could blink, and then swung his powerful legs onto the siding of the house, and then into her window. After his feet touched her wooden floors, he _shook, _water from his body flying everywhere, like only a dog would. Bella laughed so hard she snorted, causing him to join in.

When they were finished chuckling, he spoke. "I slept, but not that good, you know? When I woke up, all I wanted to do was see you. So I came," he said simply, sitting on her bed.

"I know. I've been thinking about yesterday since I woke up...that was about all of five minutes ago, of course," she breathed. "When you dropped me at home last night, I didn't want you to leave."

"You think _I _wanted to leave?" he said incredulously, then ran his hand through his black chopped hair and closed his eyes. After what seemed like an eternity, he opened them and spoke again.

"This shit really needs to come with a better manual," he said slowly, looking directly at her. "See, there's this voice in my head telling me to ask you...no, to _tell you,_ to sit down on the bed next to me and let me give you the proper kiss hello, and then to let me kiss you in about eighty other places...but there's this other voice in my head, the normal _me, _I guess? That knows it's kind of soon for that. And that knows I shouldn't be giving you any kind of commands."

Bella sank down on the bed, leaving just a few inches of space between them, angling her body towards his. "That's funny," she half-whispered. "Because there's this voice in _my_ head that tells me that I want you to do both of those things, and about a million other things to me. And she likes commands just fine."

He took a baited breath, reaching out and gently placing a strand of her hair that had fallen in her face behind her ear. His touch sent sparks all throughout her body, and she shivered. He curled the hair around his finger, apparently reveling in the texture.

Without either of them realizing it, he had gotten just inches away from her mouth.

"So," he finally said quietly. "Which voice do we listen to? The one that makes the most sense, or the one that feels..."

"_Right,_" she finished, and fastened her lips to his.

This kiss wasn't at all like the one in the forest. Whereas before, he was the dominant force to her submissiveness, this one was all need, on both of their parts. She _needed_ him to kiss her, to make her feel wanted, loved, and all the things he'd said she was yesterday. And somehow, she _knew_ that he needed the affirmation as well, if only of the fact that she knew about the bond, accepted it, and wanted this life with him.

She wound her arms tightly around his neck, and he pulled her slight frame tight into his. She tried to pour all of what he needed into the kiss, saying a million times over in her head, _yes, I want you, I want this, don't think I don't, but I'm so scared that this isn't real, that I'm dreaming. Don't leave me, don't leave. Please._ When her thoughts of reassurance turned into pleas, he traced his tongue around her lips, which would have caused her to fall over, if not for her being wrapped so securely in his arms. After tasting her, he pulled away gently, face still leaned in close, and she cried out from the lost of contact.

_"I'm not going anywhere._ You do know that, right?" She gasped, wondering if he could read her mind. "No, I'm not a mind reader. But your emotions have always been written on your face, and this imprint thing makes it even easier to know what you're thinking...I feel this fear coursing through me like it's mine. Based on what you said yesterday, I'm assuming you're scared I'll leave. And I won't." He looked at her like he was studying her.

"I know you won't," she finally answered softly, touching his cheek. "And I know you need to know that I choose you, that I want this. And I do. I'm sorry I didn't know that I wanted it before. I don't know...I don't know what the hell was wrong. I don't know why it took you to imprint to make me know what I wanted...I'm so, so, _sorry, Jake.."_

"Shhh," he whispered, wiping her eyes. Had she been crying? "It's okay."

"It's _not.._but I wanted to talk to you about something else...I just can't remember what it is when you're this close." And just like that, her fear and remorse turned into _desire_ and she couldn't breathe. She pulled him even closer, burying her face in his shoulder and breathing in his musky, woodsy scent. "Funny," he breathed. "I wanted to talk to you about something too, and its getting harder and harder..._literally.._.to do that." She couldn't stop herself from pulling slightly away from him to eye the prominent bulge in his cutoff shorts.

"Concentrate, and you tell me first," she said, willing her eyes to meet his.

He closed his eyes for a moment, and then spoke.

"Well, it's _this_, really. All of it," he indicated, waving his hand between the two of them. "It's going to get more and more... difficult... for us to be around each other when the mating drive is so strong," he finished uncertainly.

"Mating drive?"

"It's what drives imprinted couples to mate for the first time. It's strong as hell in the beginning, right after you imprint. Most couples, according to the legends, don't make it very far into the relationship without sealing the bond." he breathed. He looked at her intensely.

She sighed, her fears confirmed. "I figured as much," she said. "That was what I was going to ask you about."

"Well, we don't have to...if you don't want..." He looked down then and fiddled with his shorts, all the assuredness that the imprint afforded him falling away in one fell swoop. "I mean, I don't want to force you into anything you don't want to do." Rejection washed over his strong features.

"_No, _Jake. _Believe_ me, I want," she breathed, grabbing his hand and pressing it to her chest. God forbid he thought she didn't even want him. _"I_ _want to _more than I've ever wanted to in my life. It's just..this is all happening so fast, you know? Like normal people don't _do_ this, Jake. Normal couples, they sit down and get to know each other, and..."

Jacob met her eyes then, giving her a little smirk and squeezing her hand. "I get that we might be going about this at warp-speed, but Bella, if that's your best argument, pick a new one. We've _known _each other since we were three."

"You know what I mean, Jake."

"Nah, I don't think I do. I know your favorite color; your favorite book; I've already met or at least've heard of everyone in your family. I know you ate a roach when you were seven on a dare -"

"That was _not _a roach, Jacob Black." She couldn't believe he brought that up.

"Yes it was, slimy and crawly and everything. And you ate it, because I dared you. And then you gave me the most smug look a seven year old could give a five year old, right before you threw up all over your dress." He burst out laughing, and she joined, in spite of herself.

"I know that you used to call every week when you were in Phoenix, at least for the first two or three months after summer ended and you'd leave for the school year. Then I wouldn't hear from you for a while, and I'd get sad, at least up until Christmas, and then I'd call you, and then we'd talk over the breaks. And then -"

"And then we'd wait a while, a few months, because I would get caught up with school, or dealing with Renee's craziness, or something," Bella laughed, remembering. "And then by the time it was calling time again, I'd be -"

"On your way back to me." he finished. He leaned down into her and stretched out some on the bed, pressing his head against her chest. "And then Dad told me you'd be moving down here, and I was _so happy, Bells - _I'd finally get to see you, all the time, whenever I wanted. And you were so _pretty_, when I'd saw you last year - the same, but different. Older; you were filling out in all the right spots. And I began to plot," he said simply, stroking her hand with his other one.

"Plot? What were you plotting?" She said, the grin cracking her face.

"I began to plot to make you mine," he said softly. "I was tired of being the best friend. I wanted more. And then, when you smiled at me that first day back, I knew you'd let me. Maybe not right then and there, because you were still hung up on the age difference, but you'd let me sooner or later."

She thought about it, back to her first few days back. Jake, with his long hair that she loved so much, was just as sweet as she'd always remembered, and had been doing some _filling out_ of his own...a blind woman would have noticed. She _definitely _would have, eventually.

"But then he got stuck on you," he said flatly, trying and failing to keep the bitterness out of his tone.

She sighed. "Yeah," she said quietly.

"And you got stuck on him. And I never heard a word from you, for almost a year. You know, it kind of made me sad, at first, because I thought we were better than that, but I knew how crazy chicks get over their boyfriends. Becca was the worst," he said, rolling his eyes and giving her a half smile. She forced out a frozen smile that didn't reach her eyes. She was too busy concentrating on swallowing the lump in her throat.

"So I let it go, for the most part. At least until I phased. Then all the sadness flew out of the window, and I was just mad." He took a deep breath, and rubbed her arms softly with his hands. She could feel his agitation, even now. "But you already know that part. I said all that to say that we've known each other for a while now, and we were on the right track, but some kind of way, we lost each other. That doesn't mean we're any less _ready..." _he traced her lips with his fingers - "to go further."

All her train of thought was lost at the feel of his rough, calloused fingertips on her mouth. He was _impossibly _gentle with her, but the way his dilated eyes met hers told her that he could _use as much force _as she wanted, when she wanted... if she wanted.

_And damn, _did she want it.

But she couldn't do this...she wasn't going to. She was going to rise above this supernatural shit and give this relationship the beginning it deserved.

She pulled his hand down and laced it with hers again, and opened her mouth to speak.

"Maybe that argument doesn't work," she said finally. "But Jake, I'm not this girl. The girl that fucks her boyfriend within hours of defining their relationship. I want to get to know you, not as the best friend, but as the boyfriend. I know it will be hard -"

"Hard isn't the word, more like damn near impossible," he murmured, but gave her a soft smile.

"But we've got to try. Don't we owe each other that?"

"No, you're right...and what's worse, you're saying all the things I _wanted_ to say before I got here and saw you, and _smelled you." _She blushed deeply.

"But we do owe it to each other... and we owe it to ourselves." He grit his teeth, tearing his gaze away from hers. "I'm** _not_** going to completely forget who I was just because this freaky shit's taken over my life." His eyes flashed with determination, and she fought a shiver at his slight intonation of the Alpha command.

She was in tune with him more than ever when he used that voice, even if she didn't fully understand what it was. Even as he uttered those words, his body seemed more aligned with the Wolf; possessive, predatorial, and fully equipped with the sense of self and presence he'd mastered since he and the Wolf became one.

_This_ was the side of him that made her go weak in the knees and made her legs spread without her consent. She pressed them tighter together as a reflex, trying and failing to hide her arousal.

He was quiet for a moment, and then spoke. "Thank you for being the voice of reason, Bells...but I've got one more thing to add," he said.

"What?" she asked, voice super soft.

_"Don't make me wait too long."_


	6. Chapter 6: The part of me that likes you

**_A/N – Still shocked by the amazing reviews I've gotten so far…new to this scene, and I'd abandoned this story for a while, so its nice to come back to such positivity. Thank you so much, I'm humbled._**

**Jacob **

For the past few days, Jake had successfully tuned out the Wolf's pretty much all encompassing desire to fuck Bella's brains out.

And for the past few days, Sam had just as _unsuccessfully _managed to tell Leah what the hell was going on with his repeated disappearances, cancelled dates, and just general douchebaggery. Every time he tried, she'd hang up on him or just refuse to pick up the phone, or refuse to speak to him when he approached her in passing.

Jake was here with him now, the two of them hiding outside of her house like creepers, to help him plead his case. _The things I put up with…_his thoughts trailed. They should be patrolling right now. He'd promised Bella he'd come see her when they were done, and the quicker they got this over with, the quicker he could get back to sniffing cold scents.

"What do you think I should lead with?" Sam was wringing his hands together and pacing outside of the little white brick house that the Clearwaters called their own.

"Fuck if I know. _Hey honey, the reason I've been MIA is because I turn into a big fluffy Wolf-Dog. _Or how about, _I used to be Alpha Wolf-Dog, and when I was, I was retarded enough to lay down this edict to ensure that I couldn't_ _tell you _what the fuck was _going on with me and my Pack of Wolf-Dogs. But it's okay now, because Jake came through and cancelled all that shit out, and we can go live happily ever after, see?"_

"Fuck you, Black. What happened to you being supportive? 'Go get your girl,' and all of that?"

"I'm all on the Sam 'n' Lee train, but what you did was pretty idiotic, dude. She's not talking to you for a reason."

It was once of Jake's first official acts since the takeover, nixing Sam's previous, _insane_ edict of keeping mum about Pack business to those who weren't Pack. It wasn't fair to the mothers and fathers who worried sick about their teenagers every night; it wasn't fair to boys' reputations, which had been sullied by rumors of gang and drug activity due to their repeated absences from school and the five of them constantly being seen together. The most important people in a Pack member's life would know some variation of the truth, with the Pack member deciding the level of information those people could handle.

"I was just trying to-"

"Protect her, yada, yada. Yeah, I get it. Look how good that turned out."

Sam sighed. "Just shut it, Jake. I'm going to go knock on the door."

"Wait." He pulled Sam's arm before he could embarrass himself further. "Let me go ask for her." Before he could protest, Jake cut him off. "Look, if your face is the first she sees, she's just going to tell you to fuck off. Let me try to explain."

Sam's deep black eyes, a mix of anger, fear and uncertainty, attached to Jacob's. "If you fuck this up for me, Black, I'll kill you," he barked warningly.

_Yeah, because you did so well the last time around._ "Sure, sure. Now wait here. I'll bring her over in a minute." After giving Jake a final glare, Sam disappeared in the trees surrounding the front yard.

Still shaking his head, Jake strode up to the screen door, running his fingers through his hair in a bout of last minute nerves. Reality was, he _didn't _want to fuck this up for his Beta, at least any more than it already was. He rapped three times, then waited. Leah's gangly little brother, Seth, was the one to answer.

"Jacob Black," he said with an easy smile, sticking out his hand. "Seth Clearwater. I'm Leah's brother, but I'm guessing you already knew that." Jake took his hand, returning the smile, then flinched. Clearwater was at least six degrees warmer than he should have been, and while he still had a ways to go before furry time, he was definitely next in line. The realization hit Jacob like a sock in the gut.

The coven was gone, and this _shouldn't_ still be happening. _This kid's like, 14._

He forced the despondency from of his expression before it could register with Seth, firmly putting the superficial grin back in its place. "Yeah, I did know that. Nice to meet you. Is Leah home?" Jake politely asked, although both he and Sam could hear and smell the girl from outside.

"Yeah, she's in her room. Spends a lot of time holed up there these days. Do ya want to come in? My mom's at the clinic, but my dad's out in the backyard, if you wanted to holler at him while you're here."

"Nah, just tell him I said hello." While Jake had an easy relationship with the third elder, who had become like a father to him over the years, Harry was touchy when it came to the topic of Sam and Leah. If he knew Jake was here on Sam's behalf to make a plea for his daughter's affection, yet _again_, he might not be so welcoming. "If you don't mind, I'll just wait out here until she comes out. We don't know each other very well, and I don't want her to feel like I'm crowding her space. Tell her I just wanted to talk to her for a minute."

"Okie dokie." Seth shot him another bright smile, then disappeared from the screen door, leaving the main door open. The kid literally _radiated_ positive energy, much like Jacob used to.

That Jacob, and that time, felt worlds away from where he was now.

After what seemed longer than the five minutes it actually was, Sam's ex came to the door, a withering expression on her face. Jake got a good look at her for the first time in a while, outside of Sam's head. If you looked beyond the near permanent scowl etched on her face, the girl was actually very pretty, with long, luxurious hair that fell like water down her shoulders and back, almond shaped deep brown eyes, and full, pouty lips. Jake could see why Sam was so smitten, although Leah couldn't hold a candle to his Bella.

"Can I help you?" Her voice, hard and grating, pierced through his musing.

"Hi Leah. My name is Jacob, but everyone calls me Jake."

"I know who you are. You're Billy Black's son, and you're one of Sam's new friends. Why the hell are you on my porch? Did he send you here?" She narrowed her eyes even further and folded her arms.

So she was feisty. Ok, he could deal with that.

"Something like that. I was wondering if I could talk to you for a few minutes?"

"We are talking. So spill it."

"It might be..easier if you stepped outside. I wanted you to know, in full, why Sam hasn't been around a lot lately." He wondered if he should give her the puppy dog eyes. Chicks usually fell for the puppy dog eyes.

"So he sends you to create some convoluted explanation, but he can't come do it himself?" She was getting more agitated by the second, but she did step out from the screen. Jake peered at her carefully. Amid all the anger, there was a ray of what seemed like hope in her expression. He exhaled. She still loved him, and that made this easier than he'd thought.

"Actually, he thought it would be better if I did the explaining, seeing as you haven't been as receptive to him lately when he's tried," Jacob's tone was light, but the hint of accusation in his tone set her on fire.

"_And just what the hell else did he expect?_ I barely know who he is anymore; we hardly ever hang out because he's spending all his time with _you _and your crew of gangster-wannabes; he looks like he's been injecting steroids daily since early last year, and …I heard there's someone else," she finished, her bottom lip quivering.

"Leah, none of that is true…_especially _that last part. All Sam thinks about is you," he said softly. She let out a choked gasp.

"He talks about you all the time, about how he wants to make things better. That's why I'm here. What I'm about to tell you will be really hard to believe, at first, but if you think about things, it will start to make a lot of sense." Jake indicated for her to sit on the porch, and she hit him with a look that said she had every intention of standing for whatever the news was…but then, surprisingly, she acquiesced.

He launched into the explanation quickly, deftly leaving out any mention of imprinting. When he finally finished, he closed his eyes, waiting for the laugh that was sure to come. When he heard nothing, he opened them.

He was shocked to find tears running down her face.

"What's…what's wrong?" Jake asked fearfully. He could handle the tough bitch, he could handle sarcasm, but tears were another animal.

"It's just…look, I don't know you very well, and I don't know how well you know him…but before all this, Sam used to be a nice guy. He was never cruel," she insisted, wiping her face and looking at him, almost pleadingly. "I don't know what he told you about us, but I thought…it seemed like we were in love. Tell him if he doesn't feel that way anymore, he doesn't…have to…do this." The tears were falling faster now, and his heart was breaking for her. "He doesn't have to be cruel…because I don't remember him that way, and if he has changed, I want to remember him the way he was, you know?"

This Leah wasn't anything the tough-as-nails, spirited woman Sam described. Sam's approach saved Jake from mumbling incoherently in response.

"Baby, I haven't changed. I'm just really, _really, stupid,"_ Jake let out another relieved whoosh of breath, then backed away, as Sam strode over to her at near wolf-speed to wipe the steady stream from her face. Leah flinched at his touch, but then closed her eyes and allowed him to continue to caress her cheek and run his fingers through her hair. Jake watched as they both completely melted into each others' touch, each body attuned to the other like they were both coming home after a long day. "I can prove it to you. No matter what, just _look at_ me, and see me, okay? Forget everything else." She nodded slowly, opening her eyes and fastening them to his.

As his Beta morphed into the big black hulk, Leah staggered back several feet, then burst into full on sobs, falling to her knees in the front yard. Her one-time fiancé phased back to his human form, then wrapped his arms around her, nakedness be damned, crying himself and mumbling words of comfort all at once.

"_Sammy…._I thought…I thought-"

"Ssh. It's okay. I know what you thought, and you have nothing to apologize for…I'm the asshole…" And then he swept her into a kiss with a passion that could have rivaled the ones Jake placed on Bella, or Jared on Kim. Tiptoeing away to give them their peace, Jake decided in that moment that you didn't always need an imprint to point you in the right direction.

Sometimes, you wound up there all on your own.

* * *

><p><strong>later<strong>

Jake came up behind his own imprint, who was chopping onions in Charlie's kitchen, and wrapped his large arms around her middle. Burying his face in her shoulder, he breathed in her scent headily. She always smelled like strawberries and fresh air, and something else that was just inherently…._Bells._ He sniffed again, getting his fix, and ignored the steadily building chant in his head to _take, claim, NOW._

Bells didn't flinch, or otherwise give any indication that she hadn't seen him coming. She leaned her head back on his chest and sighed a little purr of contentment. "Hey," was all she said in response.

"Hey yourself," he responded back. She'd worn her hair down, and he ran his hand through it, twirling the strands around his fingers. He and the Wolf both thought her hair was one of her best features. "Where's Charlie?"

"In the living room. You crept in through the back with all this stealth like you were trying to hide from him," she whispered accusingly, grinning all the while.

"I wasn't trying to hide. I was_ trying _to surprise you."

She laughed. "Jake, I felt you coming five minutes ago. I doubt you'll ever be able to surprise me again." She scooped up the onions into a stewing pot on the stove, along with the celery and parsley she'd already put in there. Then, she grabbed a gigantic package of ground meat from the fridge.

"That kind of…. _sucks._" As if everything about this wasn't weird enough already. He'd known he could feel it when he got closer to her, but he didn't know it worked both ways.

"I think its cool," she said breezily, dumping the meat in the pot. Then she turned to meet his eyes again, and didn't break her stare for a while. He couldn't decipher the expression on her face.

"What's wrong?"

"It's nothing," she said too quickly, her face turning red. Turning around again, she started fumbling in the cabinets.

Was she sick? Injured? The Wolf immediately thought, but was then soothed by the smell of her complete health. Got to be psychological, you paranoid dog, Jake thought back. Which means he could have done something wrong. But, he'd only been in the house for less than five minutes.

"Bells." He pressed gruffly, grabbing her hand and gently pulling her back to him. He hated it when she kept things from him. Her hand squeezed his automatically.

"It's really nothing. I was just thinking…Charlie might want to kill you less if you put on a shirt." she said softly, biting her lip.

"Ah. You're right. It's out in the bushes," he responded. The insane need to see and touch his own imprint after seeing Sam and Leah's post-revelation bliss, combined with his routine of simply pulling on cutoffs post-phase, had caused him to forget it outside after he'd untied the cord from his ankle. He should have thought that through a little more.

But…there was more. Bella wasn't looking at his eyes anymore, she was now staring at his chest, her own eyes wide and her face still flushed.

Oh.

She _liked what she saw._

And then, the scent of her arousal hit him like a bag of bricks. She was pooling, already.

_He_ did that. _He _turned her on.

_Mine._

And all the jokes dripping with sexual innuendo that, a month ago, he _would have_ said in response to her embarrassed expression, flew out of his head, and the Wolf made its appearance. Together, they twisted her even closer, until her breasts were pushed up against Jake's bare chest, her nipples taut even through her bra and shirt. Eyes focused on her lips, the Wolf spoke.

"What you do want, little one?"

Her legs had opened again, and she gazed at him in awe.

"_You. _Badly." She forced out, her jaw clenched tightly.

Both of them reached out to cup her mound between her thighs; a tight grab of possession, just so she knew... it was _theirs, _and theirs alone. Hiking her knee up against the countertop, she licked her lips as he traced calloused fingers along the inseam of her jeans, right over the sensitive bud between her folds. The responding incredibly soft moan she let out made the gesture all the sweeter, and what little threads to sanity Jacob had left almost unraveled.

He could take her.

Right here.

Right now.

And the man in the living room, with his dull ears, wouldn't be the wiser.

It wasn't like she didn't _want it._

She pooled with a fresh wave of wetness then, and the Wolf nearly looked into her eyes, to the part of her that was in sync with him on a level that neither of them understood, to silently ask for a final blessing before he tore through every article of clothing on her body ….. but then Jake blinked his eyes and shook his head, and remembered that although his twin soul wanted to devour him as badly as he wanted her, Bella the _woman _needed time. And Jake the _man_ wanted, and needed, the same. He wanted her to want him _for him_, not because the bond demanded it.

If he took her now, when the haze cleared, she'd regret it, and they'd both feel cheated.

Not to mention, he didn't want her to feel like a slut for practically fucking in the kitchen with her father just a room away.

"Bella." He said quietly, removing his hand from her legs and letting her leg down.

As he did so, she let out a cry of protest.

"Shh," he responded. "I don't think this is what we need. Not yet. And I'm sorry for going all primal on you." He smoothed her shirt back in its place and clasped her hands lightly.

Rejection played out on her pretty features, and it almost killed Jake. But then she blinked and came a little back to herself, it seemed. Swallowing thickly, she nodded.

"You're right. Of course, you're right. _God._" She shook her head, looping her fingers through his. "Charlie could have come up for a beer, and then you'd have been done for. I'm sorry for acting like such a sl-"

"_Don't_ say it," he cut her off. "Never apologize again for responding to me. You will _never_ be slutty for responding to me. You were made for me, and vice versa, right? It would suck if you didn't think I was attractive at all," he said, grinning now.

"I don't think you would have _ever_ had to worry about that, even before the imprint," she mumbled, to his elation. Stepping out of his tight embrace, but still keeping her hand twined in his, she turned to turn the fire on over the pot on the stove.

"It's just different now. We can…we can talk about it later. After dinner. After this _late _dinner. You'd said you be here earlier," she said lightly. "Charlie's been watching basketball all by his lonesome."

"I know. I'm sorry. Something with Sam came up. Speaking of your dad… be right back," he said, pecking her on the lips quickly before dashing out the back and to the bushes, to put on the shirt.

He then strode over to the front door, ringing the bell like he'd just pulled up.

"Hi, Chief," he said with a lazy grin, as Charlie pulled open the door.

"Jake," Charlie acknowledged with a smile, backing away so he could get through. "You walk all the way here?" Charlie squinted into the darkness behind him, searching for a car but finding none.

"Nah, I got a ride. What's been up? Haven't seen you, in like, 36 hours." he joked, moving past him to sit on the couch.

"You're sure here an awful lot now. You're lucky I like you, kid," he joked. "Bells! Jake's here!"

"Be right there, browning the meat for dinner. Hey Jake," Bella called through the house. He could hear her conspiratorial smile in her voice.

"Hiya Bells. Sorry I got here so late."

"You'll figure out a way to make it up to me, I'm sure."

"So Chief, what game is this? College ball?" Jake was surprised; Charlie rarely bothered with NCAA games.

"Washington State vs. Utah Valley. Nothing spectacular, just passing time until dinner was done. Bells didn't want to eat without you, so she started late." He took a dragging sip of his Coke.

"Sorry again for making you go hungry, Charlie."

"Nah, you're good."

After a few more minutes of point gains and comfortable silence, Charlie cleared his throat. "Son, I know I haven't said much about you and my Bells' new, uh..._development_, other than to whoop for joy when she told me -" his beard crinkled up into a smile "- but I just wanted you to know, I couldn't pick a better choice for her." he finished, lowering his voice to a whisper.

"I appreciate that, Charlie." Jake said sincerely.

"That said, the Cullen kid, he did a number on her. I was toying with the idea of letting her go see somebody before the two of you got together; someone to help her sort things out better than I could." He looked at Jake, gauging his reaction.

Jake shook his head resolutely in response. "Bella's always been stubborn, we both know that. She wouldn't have gone, even if it was for her own good."

"Maybe not if _I _asked her, but...look. I'm just going to give it to you straight. Bella, she hung too much on that Cullen boy, and when he left...well, we both know how that went. Now she's with you, and she's smiling again. I don't want that smile to go away if something happens here and you leave." Charlie fixed him with a death stare.

"You don't have that to worry about. I'm not leaving anytime soon," Jake said fiercely. _Not now, not ever, _he added mentally. If only he knew.

"Nah, I don't think you're in this for the short term. I just want...well, every parent wants their kid, 'specially their little girl, to know how to cut through it on their own, you know? Without -"

"Dad, Jake! Food's done!" Bella called obliviously from the kitchen.

"We can talk more later," Charlie whispered with another grin, getting up and Jake on the back as he passed on his way to the table. Jake got up and followed, thinking on what he had said.

"This looks great, Bells." Charlie cut off Jake's musing, heaping a decent sized pile of the meatballs and red sauce over his spaghetti and settling at the table. Jake followed, grabbing a plate and piling almost triple the size of Charlie's portion on top. The older man watched with wide eyes. "You eating for two, there son?" he remarked casually.

"Nah, just for the one. Got to keep all this muscle intact somehow," he said smirking and puffing out his chest dramatically, earning giggles from Bella and Charlie's head shake.

Dinner passed by quickly, and after Jake helped Bella wash up their plates and put the food away, Charlie immediately announced his bedtime departure. "Gotta get up early," he gruffed, turning to his room. "Jake, let yourself out. At a decent hour, please... Bella's got school in the morning," was his only instruction.

It was nice to be your imprint's dad's favorite.

"So." Jake said, turning to Bella after they both heard Charlie's door click shut.

"So," she said back, looking at him mischievously. "What do we do now?"

"We could race to your bedroom. Last one there eats leech balls for dinner!" Pecking her on the lips quicker than she could blink and mussing her hair, he took off, at what she was sure was less than his normal speed.

"You're _so mature, _Jake, really," she retorted with a chuckle. Still, Jake could hear her shooting off after him, taking the steps two at a time.

"Well, _duh,_ Bells, but you don't have to be such a spoll sport about it." he called after her, grinning when she finally made it up.

She plopped down on the bed next to him, gazing at him a second longer than normal, her face still lit up. "What?" he quizzed, smiling back.

"This."

"This what?"

"This. Us."

"Us, being...?"

"Being...us. Normal. Sort of. I like it," she continued, twirling her hair. "I like just hanging out with you, before the wooey-hooey stuff kicks in, and I forget my own name. Not to say that I don't like forgetting my name, either..." she said hurriedly, biting her lip after she spoke. He wasn't sure it was a conscious action.

"Because _names are so overrated, anyway..."_

"Shut up. But yeah, that part? Where this part of me recognizes the part of you that wants to tear through me, and _claim.." _How could he _not_ be hard around her when she said things like that? "...that part isn't so bad either, is what I meant. But _that _you_, _and _that_ me_, they_ know each other well enough. But_ this _me and _this_ you, it's nice to know that they can hang out, together, too. And have fun." she finished, taking his hand.

Jake ignored the sparks the innocent touch generated. "Yeah. It is nice to know that," he replied slowly, trying and failing to stop the smile from cracking his face. Bella _liked_ hanging out with him, even without the imprint's influence. They'd hung out before Sparkle Dick, sure, whenever she'd make it into Forks, but Jake had a harder and harder time in the last year remembering _pre-S.D. _Bella. And now, their hanging out meant so much more.

He was betting so much more on it.

They sat on the bed close to the window, hands intertwined, watching how the moonlight hit the trees.

"Bells?" Jake finally said, interrupting the comfortable silence.

"Yeah?" she answered serenely, her voice sounding miles away.

"Would you...ever want to talk to someone. About...him?"

She flinched at what he was insinuating. "Don't ruin the moment, Jake." she said flatly.

"I'm sorry. It's just...Charlie said something, when you were making dinner, and it got me to thinking. He's really worried, you know. On the concerned dad scale, he's got to be hitting, like a 50."

"Why? I'm happy, aren't I? No catatonic states, no nighttime screams. Those days are one and done." she said briskly, giving his hand a squeeze. "Thanks to you."

"That's the thing; that's what's got his radar up. He wants you to be happy because _you're_ happy, not because some guy makes you happy."

"You're hardly _some guy,_ Jake. Soul mate, remember?"

"_Twin soul_, not soul mate, and don't you forget it. And yeah, got that. But he's not looking at it like that. He's looking at it from a dad perspective, and wondering how one guy could get your dander up so much you lose yourself. And as your resident twin soul, I can't say I disagree with his point of view. I'm wondering the same thing myself," he said gently.

"I told you what my deal was," she said uncomfortably. "Immortality, beauty, money, anything you could want, combined with the fact that I actually loved the guy...it was a lot to take in," she finished.

"Still, I wonder if.."

"If what? If he was one of the stops along the way?"

"Yeah. Maybe. And you don't have to lie to me. You can use the present tense when you're talking about him."

"You're right. It's not like you don't know it all anyway," she laughed, a release of nervous energy. "Love, then. Love him. And maybe he was. Is. I don't know. If he came back today and begged me to come back..." Jake felt his heart break at her words. "I don't think I could go. I don't know what trying to be apart from you would do to me," she said uncertainly, and Jake gave her a small smile. She wanted to stay with him because she was worried about her health. Not the best answer, not _because I love you more_, but he'd take it.

"Still, he's like this part of me that I can't shake, you know? At least not now. Not while you and I are so fresh. Would it even feel genuine if I were to just forget about him?" she challenged, looking at him full on with those doe eyes.

"Of course not. I'd feel like we wouldn't have stood a chance, if not for the imprint," he said fiercely.

"Good. Then you know it won't be easy, making me love you instead of him. And that's how you want it?"

"That's the only way it should be. Except..."

"Except what?" She had leaned into him now, her head on his chest, listening to it rise and fall.

"Except it might be easier than you think. I'm pretty fucking loveable," he finished, affixing her with his best version of his own puppy eyes.

She snorted and mock-punched him on the arm. "That you are, puppy,"

"That you are."

_**A/N again: So what did you think? A little bit of the intense, but also a little of the fun. And aren't Sam and Leah soooo cute! Oh-my-gosh so perfect. Sigh. Pack and Bella interaction (finally!) in the next chapter. **_


	7. Chapter 7: Meeting

_**A/N - So I so would apologize that it takes me forever to update, but yeah. I'd probably just have to keep apologizing. This story's always on my mind though, even if IRL stuff prevents me from grinding it out on a weekly basis. Anywho - for those still reading, enjoy!**_

**Jacob**

"Is Bella here yet?" Embry asked Jacob with a knowing smirk, eyes trained on a butter knife he was flipping lazily in the air.

"No, you dick, quit asking already." He responded, running his hands through his hair quickly. He was nervous, Em could smell it, and Em was fucking with him, after watching him check his phone five times in 15 minutes. Embry chuckled, letting the knife clatter down on the wooden kitchen table and glancing quickly and covertly at the clock on the wall. "I've only asked twice. Besides, I'm just preventing you from asking yourself… in your head."

_Touche. _"Yeah, but you're still a dick."

It was the first pack meet up since Jake imprinted, and Bella was being introduced to the Pack as _his._ There was cause to be a little nervous. Hell, it was the first pack meeting since Jake took Alpha, and the center of their Pack _shifted – _for the first time, they weren't gathering at Sam's, for instance. The five of them, the imprints, and Leah, would meet for dinner instead at the Black house. Leah was already helping Kim set up the dinner table, and Billy, Harry, Sam and Jared were watching some football game in the den. The two elders insisted on being present – Billy obviously because it was his house and he was nosy, and Harry obviously because he was even more nosy than Billy – but they'd vowed to only join them for dinner, and leave the Pack-talk to Pack members only.

He was less nervous about the focus being on him now, though, and more worried about how _Bella_ would take the focus being on her. As the Alpha's imprint, she could almost automatically be considered the female leader of the pack, the resident woman in charge, the queen of the imprints – yeah, that was pretty cheesy – but whatever. You name it; she was the female equivalent. They were going to look to her in some capacity – and she didn't do well with crowds. That much had been obvious, ever since they were younger. She hated being in the spotlight.

Knowing that, he wouldn't ask her do anything more then be there, at his side, if she really didn't want to. She didn't have to get along with anyone but him, if that's what she wanted.

But he really wanted her to do more.

"She said she'd be here in 10 minutes," he said to no one in particular, but looking at Embry, since he was, you know, in the room. Embry outright laughed at that one. "Yeah, dude. I know." His eyes shone a little bit longer with inner laughter, and then his tone turned serious.

"I think it'll be fine. Like, cool. Aren't these things kind of supposed to work themselves out, anyway? I mean, look at you. A while ago me and you were goofing off at role play or whatever the fuck, and now, you're like, the Chief or something. And I'm…I'm like this ladies man."

Now it was Jake's turn to guffaw, which he did, loudly.

The boys all enjoyed their share of fawning from the Rez's women and girls, and Em was no exception. Jake had heard a group of girls at the Rez school judging the two of them the other day, and while Jake was undoubtedly receiving his fair share of admiration, Em was dubbed the "hottest." Jake had taken that one a little personally, although in truth he could care less what they actually thought, since they didn't hold a candle to his Bella.

It was more about…he didn't know, this masculine pride thing, or whatever the fuck.

"They just like you 'cause you're…available. Unimprinted, and all that. Something in them recognizes that they could be the one." That had to be it.

"Or, I just could be hotter than you." An easy grin covered Embry's face.

"You wish."

"Are you guys done with the testosterone fest? It'd be nice if we got some help putting this food out," Leah cut in, striding purposefully into the small kitchen. Jake grinned at her. She smelled like Sam, lilacs, and familiarity.

Em slipped into a smile as well."Sure Lee," he nodded her way. "What do you need?"

"You can start by carrying these. The macaroni –" after bending to get the first massive pan from the oven, she thrust it into Jake's hands – "the macaroni again –" she handed him the second pan – "and the string bean casserole." She handed that pan to Embry. "I'll carry the beef."

"You sure you can get that, all by yourself?" Jake asked quizzically. He wasn't being condescending, by any means. It was nearly a 20-pound roast, fully dressed with all the fixings. If not for the super agility, he'd have worried himself about slipping and dropping it.

"I'm fine, stop being such a guy," she snapped, lifting the pan from the counter with ease. "I had to put it in the pan myself, didn't I, when I helped Sue fix it? You men always think you're stronger." She shook her head, as if to clear it, before giving them a slow, shy smile. "I guess _you_ guys are, though, aren't you? This is all so weird…interesting, to say the least, but very weird…" With that, she carried the pan into the dining room.

Jake and Embry watched her go. "She's really adjusted well to this, hasn't she?" Embry said thoughtfully, too quiet for her to hear.

"She's fitting right in. It feels natural, but she's not..."

"I know. She's not. Still…it's good to see her getting on so well."

Jake hoped it would stay that way.

Sam saw no reason to go into full detail about the whole imprintee/ed situation, because one, he was convinced it would never happen to him, and two, in his eyes, and to anyone who didn't know otherwise, Leah _was _his other half. Jake had caught a glimpse in his head recently of him explaining why Jared looked at Kim the sun rose and set on her, and while the explanation he gave her was mostly true, he painted it as something that wolves who weren't fully matured needed in order to calm them down. He had Lee, he reasoned, who balanced him out perfectly, so he didn't need the spirits to point him in any directions. Jake didn't press him about it, because hell, it was _his _business, and he was ten times happier now that he and Leah were making a go of it.

And happy Sam made a better Beta then self-depreciating, lonely Sam.

They followed her into the dining room, where Kim was fixing a few daisies in a small cup on the table. "How does everything look?" she asked them both.

"It looks great, baby!" Jared's cheerful voice carried from the living room.

"Babe, you can't even _see _what I did." She muttered back irritably, but there was a fondness in her eyes.

"You did it, right?"

"Yes, Jared."

After three lumbering steps, Jared's lanky frame appeared in the dining room doorway. "Then it looks great," he finished, sauntering over to her and grabbing her face in his hands to plant a quick one on her mouth. She blushed deeply in response, all irritation gone. He smirked at her cockily, and then, finally, looked at the table, nodding his head in approval. "See, I knew I was right."

Before Jake could roll his eyes to appropriately match Embry's exaggerated gag, Leah's singsong voice rang out in approval.

"Y'all are _too _cute. Aren't they cute, Sam?" Sam had followed Jared into the room.

"We're cuter," he replied petulantly, and smirked at Jared, closing the distance between him and Leah and pinching her ass. She promptly slapped his hand away and laughed.

"What the fuck is all this lovey dovey bullshit about?" Paul's voice called from outside. Late, as usual, but could always be counted on for much needed sarcastic relief. Kim and Jared, who had still been intertwined in some fashion, both groaned and pulled away. Leah just rolled her eyes. "I could hear you assholes halfway up the street. I hope this isn't going to be another imprint love fest, because you can just take your Pack meeting and shove it, Black."

He swung open the Black's front door like he owned it, grunted a quick hello to Billy and Harry, who were still intently focused on the game, and walked into the kitchen, hooking his fingers into his belt loops and leaning against the door frame with the disinterested look that was his trademark.

"Hello to you too, Paul," Sam acknowledged with a grin.

"Look, dude I'm glad you got your girl back, and all, but if you start turning into fucking Romeo and Juliet over here –" he indicated Kim and Jared, who stuck his tongue out at Paul childishly - "I'm going to have to respectfully request that you take your balls back. There's only so much of that shit I can take."

"I don't think you ever have to worry about us getting _that_ bad," Sam laughed, taking Leah's hand. "The one you'll have to watch is_ that_ one." He indicated Jake, who just shook his head and smiled.

"That little dipstick? What, you think listening to his thoughts about Bella isn't bad enough? There's only so many levels of obsessed you can be with someone else, dude. I think he's hit rock bottom for her already."

"You don't know the half," Embry said slyly. "Jake's got some…uh, _unfinished_ _business_ to attend to." He stared at Embry incredulously. _Really dude? You're going to go there? _

"Unfinished business? Oh no…dude, you got to nip that shit in the bud right away," Jared said, lowering his voice so the men in the living room couldn't hear him. "It's only going to get worse. Trust me, I _know._ Just…find a quiet place, get suited up, and…get that shit over with…"

Kim gaped at him. "_Really,_ Jared? That's all it was to you? Something to _get over with?" _

"Get suited up?" Leah cut in, oblivious to Kim's anger. "What is he, going to combat? Ignore these assholes, Jake. You and Bella will do whatever you need to do, whenever you're ready to do it. And when you _do_ go there, make sure you _protect_ yourselves, not "suit up" or whatever the hell you guys call it these days –"

_"Find a quiet place? _Is that what you did, Jared? So we could get it over and done with, right? Did you strike it off on your _damn _to-do list?" The uncharacteristic swearing rolled off Kim's tongue like water. "Baby, _no, _I didn't mean it like that…calm down –"

**"Enough." **

Everyone's mouth in the room snapped shut. "**From now on**, any mention of my and Bella's sex life, or lack thereof, is off limits. **Don't say it, **don't even **think it.**" If it wasn't for the approaching scent of rust, metal, and strawberries, he would have phased right then, he was so pissed. "**Especially not now. **Because she's here."

And through the window, there she was, pooling out of the rusted truck's doors and slightly tripping over her own feet, loose curls falling all over her face.

* * *

><p><strong>Bella<strong>

Nervous just wasn't the word.

Scared, petrified, maybe. That was a little closer.

She'd spent close to 20 minutes just brushing her hair. That was only rivaled by the near hour she spent in the shower.

She'd never taken this long to get ready. Not even for Ed…yeah, she _so _wasn't going to think about that.

At least she had one thing down – the super noses in the room. She knew from experience that anything too perfume-y wasn't as welcome as her natural scent when dealing with beings so…_super_natural. So she had been buying unscented deodorant and nixing the perfume for almost a year, leaving her with only the scent of her shampoo and conditioner…she hoped.

She'd opted for a simple enough get up – it was just dinner, right? More like mid-day lunch, but still. A green long sleeved shirt with a sweetheart neckline, and black skinny jeans, paired with her favorite pair of black Converse and plain stud earrings. She threw some cherry lip gloss and that was a wrap. She had a feeling Jake wouldn't care if she showed up in her pajamas, but she wanted to make a good impression on the others. Leah and Kim especially, but the boys too. The last time the guys had seen her, she'd been kind of a mess.

_Kind of_, the understatement of the year.

There was also the issue of the whole…falling in love with their mortal enemy thing.

She didn't know how much Jake had told them about her and Edward's relationship,

and she wasn't looking forward to people judging her, or accusing her of not being

fully on their side. She hated the fact that there had to be sides in the first place.

Ok. It was now or never.

Checking herself in the rearview mirror one last time, she took a deep breath

before stumbling out of the car. _Count on me to fall flat on my face right before __meeting someone for the first time_.

Well, not just someone. A Pack of someones.

She walked slowly up to the entrance of Jake's house.

Before she took the final steps toward the door to open it, the door swung open, and there was Jake, with the familiar possessiveness that she was slowly learning to love in his eyes; that _devotion,_ again, and just a hint of that smoldering _heat _that they were both getting better and better at suppressing. His gaze roved over her body, and she felt his appreciation of her outfit choice surge through her.

"You look…" he trailed, still staring at where the curve of her neckline met her breasts. "Amazing," he finally finished, and then gave her his signature genuine, sunny grin.

She felt the smile spread over her face in response. "I'm glad you think so," she said shyly.

"Well, what are you waiting for, Black? Bring the girl in already!" a gruff voice called from inside. She couldn't tell if it was Paul, or Sam. Both of whom she'd been pretty rude to the last time around….she had a few apologies to dole out.

Jake made an exasperated face, then gently grabbed her hand and led her in. To her surprise, Billy and Harry were in the living room. "Hi Billy. Harry," she said, smiling.

"Bella," Billy acknowledged cheerfully. Harry gave her a playful, exaggerated wink. "In with the family, now, are we?" he said smirking, elbowing Billy in the shoulder.

"Harry, Bella's always been 'in' with this family…this just makes it, I don't know, official?" Billy responded, eyes darting between the two of them mischievously.

"You can say that again. Glad to have you in the know, Bella, and fighting the good fight." Harry's light but subtle last words didn't go unnoticed by her; neither were they lost on Jacob, who gave the older man somewhat of a warning look before telling the two of them that dinner was ready, and then leading her into the kitchen.

He turned to her, indicating everyone in the room. "Em and Sam, you know. You also remember Paul –" he pointed to the tall guy in the corner that managed to look sullen and insanely attractive at the same time, and Bella realized that he was with Sam the day she slapped him.

"This is Leah, Sam's girlfriend –" he indicated a statuesque ethnic looking beauty with a head of hair longer and thicker then Bella's could ever hope to be, standing next to Sam. The beautiful girl gave her a warm smile and wave, which she happily returned. "That's my other Pack brother, Jared Cameron – the lone hazel-eyed guy in a room full of deep browns gave her an exaggerated wink –"And this is Kim, Jared's girlfriend." The shy smile took Bella by surprise.

"It's nice to meet all three of you," she said with as much sincerity as she could muster.

"Likewise…it's good to finally see, you know, in the flesh, the girl that dominates our Alpha's every waking thought," Jared joked, and the guys in the room guffawed.

Was that a blush on Jake's face? "Shut up, Jared," he mumbled uncomfortably, before pulling out a chair for Bella and sitting down next to her.

The others plopped around the table; Billy rolling up near the end, and then… the food began to disappear faster than Bella could keep track of. She watched the guys, passing plates around once, twice, and a third time; herself and the other non supernatural folk barely halfway through their first plates while the boys were on their third.

She knew Jake could eat, but..._damn._

After she'd finally finished her plate, drunk her soda, and felt full enough to push it away, a cursory glance around the table told her that most of voracious appetites had been sated, and the _five_ pans of food total were for the most part, gone.

The casual chatter that had been lingering slowly but surely died down, and Bella wondered what they were all waiting for.

Finally, Billy cleared his throat.

"I know you boys are ready to get down to business, so I won't be long," he said, looking around at all of them pointedly. "We're actually planning on leaving for a little while, to give you all some privacy –" Bella watched Jake's eyebrows raise in surprise – "but I just want to say that I couldn't be prouder of my boy here." He turned a solemn gaze to Jake.

"He's taken to this well, I hear, and…well, that's all I ever wanted." Billy's mouth remain set in its grim line, but his eyes were as expressive as Bella had ever seen them, nothing but pride shining through for his only son. Jacob responded by ducking his head sheepishly, and studying a tile on the floor beneath their feet. _He doesn't think he deserves the compliment, _Bella suddenly knew, his feelings resonating with her own.

And while she'd yet to see him in action as a leader, if Jake the Alpha was anything like Jake the man had been so far, at least when it came _to her, _then Billy's assessment wasn't far off at all.

She'd have to remind him of that, once they got some more alone time. _Thank you, freaky bond._

"And Sam, boy, you ain't done so bad yourself," Harry piped up approvingly, eyeing the Packs' one-time Alpha. The compliment, plus Leah's adoring expression, brought about a shade of red that rivaled Jacob's earlier one. Billy went on to praise Sam appropriately, saying how he'd done a "fine job" in taking on the responsibility for the Pack…"and I know you went through hell to do it," he finished.

Bella watched Sam catch Leah's hand and squeeze it.

"The pack, I know, and this tribe, by extension, appreciates everything you've done. And that's all we really wanted to say, to the both of you.," Billy finished, pushing away from the table.

Sam cleared his throat. "Thanks, Harry. Billy. It means a lot."

Jake nodded, the easy grin spreading back over his face. "It really does. Now, both of you….get out." Billy and Harry laughed along with Bella and everyone else in the room. With a final tip of his hat, Harry walked out; Billy close behind him.

The room was quiet for a beat.

Then, without a second glance at her, or anyone else, Jake stood up, looped his thumbs in his jean shorts, and walked over to the window, crossing his legs and leaning slightly on the wall. Everyone in the room was still silent, looks of expectancy on their faces, and looks of confusion on Leah and Kim's. She saw something pass over his face, like he was having a silent conversation with himself, and then he turned more fully to the window. He didn't turn around when he finally spoke.

"_Head outside._ It's…more than a little cramped in here."

His gravelly tone was a rough mix of Jake, and the Wolf.

"Aye aye captain," Paul said sarcastically, but his was the lone voice. They shuffled their feet, but they went, one by one, out the front door. Leah and Kim followed, and Bella rose to go behind them.

She wondered if they were_ compelled_ to answer him, or if they just did. Because if she were a wolf, she'd listen, either way.

There was a reason that voice made her wet.

He caught her arm before she walked out.

"Hey?" he said softly, in his Jake voice. She blinked. He looked, for the first time since she'd known about the change, like every bit of the 16–year-old he really was. He swallowed uncomfortably, the pupils in his eyes slowly going back to their normal size.

"I'm….I'm really glad you're here," he finished, staring at her intently.

"I'm glad to be here." She smoothed his brow. She didn't know he could get this nervous. "I've always wanted to see you make them all like, go fetch, or something."

His hearty laugh warmed her from the inside.

"I was hoping to make them go kill vampires, but fetch is pretty impressive, too."

"Damn straight." The mild swearing was becoming a habit. She hoped he didn't find it unattractive.

Another throaty chuckle proved that theory wrong. "C'mon." He squeezed her hand, expression calm again. He didn't let her hand go until they'd made it out, and she noticed that the patio out back with table and chairs was set up for only three – and two chairs were already occupied by Kim and Leah. She wondered where the rest of them were going to sit.

"We're not going to sit, we're going to phase and go into the trees. We'll be just out of your line of vision, but still very close." He was getting very good at answering her unasked questions.

"Ok," she breathed, trying and failing to hide the frown on her face. He turned her face to his and let his lips brush hers briefly, chastely. "I'll let you know if I need you. And later…" _I'll tell you what we talked about_. He didn't have to say it. And he'd better.

With a few strides, he was gone and Bella sank into the chair next to the two bright-eyed Quileute girls. Leah was the first to break the quiet.

"Oh my God, Bella, you two are so cute. It's insane." She was sure she was blushing. Again.

"We're not, not really." She looked down then, playing with a strand of her hair.

"Umm, you kind of are. But it's ok. Me and Jared are really cute too. I've heard it's nauseating," Kim cut in, smirking proudly. Bella laughed.

"Yup, I almost vomited watching the two of them earlier. It's something about that imprint shit that makes you go nuts. Kim can't even breathe if Jared doesn't see her, like, _every _day." Leah said matter-of-factly, running a hand through her long hair and staring beyond Kim's head into the trees. "I wonder what they're talking about, anyway." Her foot started tapping a rhythm on the table leg.

"Who knows. And the imprint does _not_ make you 'go nuts,' Leah, it's the best thing that ever happened to us. You know if Sam had imprinted, you wouldn't make fun of it."

"That's because I'd be too busy trying to hang myself. Sam's enough of a lovey-dovey dick without some mystical bullshit mandating that he lick the ground I walk on. I couldn't take much more of that," The goofy smile on her face told Bella that she liked it just fine. "Sides, the way we are's more natural. Who needs an imprint to tell me what I feel? He's what I want."

So simple, the way she put it. Yet Bella needed the imprint to tell her…what? That she loved Jake? She couldn't say that. Not yet. She loved what she saw in his eyes when he looked at her, loved the devotion that was there. Devotion that, as he'd revealed, had _always _been there, just now amplified times a thousand.

Part of her _wanted_ the Wolf, and by extension, him - a desire so intense it was suffocating at times. And all of her wanted what she saw when she looked at her the very first time, when he imprinted. The love, devotion, and family, and sense of belonging.

But did she want him? In the same way that Leah wanted Sam?

"What about you? How has it all worked out for y'all so far?"

She wished she knew. "I…it's been…intense," she said slowly, choosing the words carefully. "Really hard to get a handle on what we're doing, sometimes. On _who we are,_ others. That doesn't make any sense, does it?" Kim laughed, nodding her head in enthusiasm, and Leah stared at her skeptically.

"Oh trust me, I know the feeling. It's really,_ really _weird in the beginning." Kim's expression became wistful. "Sometimes, I miss that awkwardness…but then, with time, you get used to it. And then…" – she smiled slowly –"…it's incredible."

"I hope we'll get there," Bella said. "He's amazing, though. That's one thing I do know." She wondered if he could hear her. He probably could. Damn super ears.

Just when the conversation turned to Bella's school in Forks, and what her now probably non-existent friends were like, Jacob, alone, emerged from the trees. _Being imprinted kind of rocks,_ she thought. She was just wondering if there was some type of homing signal that sent waves to Jake when she was uncomfortable, when he called out to her.

"Bella, we've been talking," he said calmly, "and I've decided that we might need your help."

She blanched.


	8. Chapter 8: Change of Plans

She heard Kim's sharp gasp, and Leah's slow chuckle. She blinked at Jacob, whose face remained stoic.

"Jake, why –"

"Just trust me, honey." He closed the distance between them and grabbed her hand. _Cheater. _His calm rushed through her against her will. She squeezed his hand, narrowing her eyes at him all the same. She let him lead her into the clearing and then into the woods, where four men were waiting patiently, cut off shorts already carefully slid back in place.

Damn.

She was hoping to see them in their wolf forms. Or, better yet, _naked._

Yeah, those were _sooo _the thoughts to have about your other half's brothers. Her cheeks filled with red.

"Ok, Bells," Jacob cut off her musing. "We've been running across a set of vamps that aren't just passing through. They keep coming back: running us up and down the border, testing our defenses. Sam and Jared have smelt two of them around here before. But one's new," he finished.

Sam cleared his throat.

"They've crossed the treaty line and have scoped out the Cullen house twice, already. We thought you might recognize them, given the…time you spent with the Cullens." Sam added, running a hand through his hair and politely looking at a point on the ground near her shoes.

It always went back to the damn Cullens. The doting, perfect, _gone_ Cullens. They fucked up her life when they were here, and they continued to fuck up her life now.

Barely breathing, she closed her eyes for a second.

"What do they look like? Blond?" she asked, when she was sure she had control of her voice. She'd never met them, but she'd heard of the cousins in Alaska; the only others Carlisle knew that, too, were animal drinkers. Edward had said they were blond.

"Only one blond. The other, a redhead, with long, wild hair. The third, darker skinned, with dreadlocks. Anyone you know?"

Redhead. Long and wild. Dreadlocks. It couldn't be true, except it was.

And…_another_ blond?

_One breath; two. Three comes after two, _she remembered. _Then four. Five. Six._

"Bells? Bella! Are you alright? You're hyperventilating!" Jake's warm hand grabbed her arm, shaking it lightly. Even the bond couldn't calm her, not now.

"V..Victoria." She finally managed to choke out, shaking slightly in Jake's arms. "The redhead's name, it's Victoria. And the other one is Laurent, and the third one...the third one was dead. I...I watched him die. His name was James. He...he couldn't be back, could he? I mean, once you burn them, they don't come back, right?" She turned to Jake, frantic.

"No, honey. They don't come back once you burn them."

"So...it's not James. But the other ones sound familiar. Not friends," she spat out hurriedly, catching Jake's quizzical expression. "They were just nomads. Passing through. And they caught up to us when the Cullens were playing baseball, and then James figured out that I wasn't human. And that I was Edward's...that he was attachedto me."

"So James followed you." Jake deduced quietly, the mask on his face never wavering, despite Sam and Paul's raised eyebrows.

"He followed me. They brought me back to Phoenix; they were trying to throw him off. It didn't work, and he followed me. Tricked me, told me that he had Renee. I met him in a dance studio...he..." Her voice caught in her throat; the memories were coming back swiftly.

"He's the reason you have that mark on your arm, then, isn't he?" His voice was the softest she'd heard it that night.

She nodded mutely. It struck her, just then, that she hadn't told Jacob _anything._ "You were turning." he continued. It was a statement of fact with no emotion behind it. She nodded again, and she thought she saw Embry wince out of the corner of her eye. "Edward, he sucked the venom out. Saved me."

"Saved you. _Saved you? _He should have stayed the fuck away from you in the first place." He was shaking.

She flinched; but it was truth. Stinging, but truth. His breath became erratic. "_My _imprint, _my_ mate. _Turning..." _His eyes flashed a dangerous yellow, and Bella saw the disgust behind them.

There was a lot she hadn't told him, but he shouldn't have to find out like this. Not in front of his whole pack.

In a different world, if she were with Edward; if she were to be turned, they wouldn't have remained friends. That much was clear now.

She watched him carefully pull his gritted teeth back to the neutrality he'd played at. Then, his face broke into a gleaming, sardonic smirk. He turned, the strange smile still playing on his features, to the pack. "Well, boys; this just got fun. Not only do we have a group of three, filthy parasites on our hands; we've got three filthy, motherfucking parasites that _want my mate. Paul."_

With a sneer spread on his face that nearly rivaled Jacob's, Paul stood up a little straighter and looked a little prouder than the others. "Yeah?"

"You're my most ruthless fighter. You'll take the replacement."

Paul's sneer melted almost as quickly as it came. "The replacement? The _newbie?_ You're giving the newbie to your best fighter? Dude, I'm fucking insulted," he yelled.

"I didn't say _best, _I said most ruthless. Every time you fight, Paul, you lose yourself to the wolf. Operating on instinct alone can be a good thing, but sometimes you sacrifice strategy. And yeah, he's new, but he'll be more feral, a little wilder than the others, cause he's had less time in the game. Don't underestimate him. Go for the kill, and do it fast. I'd bet the fucking Rabbit the bitch chose him for a reason. _Em."_

He turned toward his best friend, who cocked his head in response.

"You and Jared will team up, take the one with dreadlocks. Kill him quick, too. I don't want him helping out the newbie or the redhead."

"Gotcha, Chief," Jared said sunnily. Embry nodded his assent.

"Sam."

The hulking figure to Jake's right looked up.

"You fight with me. We'll take the redhead."

"Got it."

"And Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"I need you to fight this one hard. The hardest you've ever fought."

Sam smiled, shaking his head. "You don't have to tell me that, Jake. Bella's as part of us as she is of you. She's your mate, and that makes her family. I feel as protective of her as I would my own blood," he continued, turning his easy grin to her. "You _do_ know that, right? You're family now," he said simply.

She smiled back, shyly. Mated. _Family._ All words she was familiar with, but that she'd associated with a different group. It would take time, but she liked the concept of finding a family in the pack.

It felt a little more _right._

Jake shook his head firmly.

"You misunderstand me. I _get _that, Sam. I'm glad Bella means something to you. To all of you," he added, turning back to everyone else. "But if you're going to fight alongside me when we get this bitch that wants _her life;_ if I'm going to _trust_ you at my flank, I'm going to need you to fight like she means much, much more. I'm going to need you to fight as if you _were me,_and then I'll fight ten times harder than that. Because that's the only way this is going to end.

"Sam, I need you to fight as if Bella were Leah."

Taking a deep breath, Sam looked hard at Bella, and then at a point past the trees. Just then, as if she knew her name was being called, Leah's laugh echoed off the walls of the forest and back to them. "I can do that. I can do that for you." He said slowly, never taking his eyes from the spot Leah and Kim were still sitting.

"Good. Then when we meet them, they'll die." Jake said simply.

"Jake?" Embry chimed in suddenly. "One point of order, here. We're teamed up to go after them, but you haven't given us a location, or, better yet, how we're going to get them there."

"That's because I'd expected that you'd know where I was going with this. If we know what they want, then we know how to lure them. We'll scent an area heavily with Bella, maybe using her hair, or something else of hers, over a few days. Make it look like she's a frequent passerby. I was thinking that meadow over on the Cullens side of the line." Bella sucked in a breath. _Their meadow. He was going to kill them in Edward's meadow._That would mean she'd have to go there, something she wasn't sure she could handle yet.

"And then we wait. If they think she'll be there, they'll come running."

"What about when they get there, and they see I'm not actually there?" She piped up. "Wouldn't they just take to the trees, even if you do have them surrounded? Or, even if they do smell me strongly there everyday, they'd also be able to smell you if you were in the shadows waiting. They might need a better incentive...she might want me, but she's not stupid." As evidenced by the many, many times she, and Laurent, had managed to stay alive. James wasn't so lucky.

"A better incentive? What's better than smelling you there?" Jake asked, puzzled.

"Well...I could actually _be_ there, Jake."

Jake laughed, a hint of something in his voice. "Yeah, right, Bells. That's hilarious." Then he registered her expression. "Wait, what? You're _serious?_ Bella, you _can't_be there. Something could go wrong. One of them could get away from me. From us. Absolutely _no. Fuck_ no. What is wrong with you?" He shook his head repeatedly, and then she finally caught what was in his tone. _Desperation._

"Jake. It's not a bad idea," she said softly. "Edward told me once that when a vampire loses its mate, they can't move on. They don't really change, so when they do change, it's kind of for forever. I bet that once she sees me she won't be focused on anything but getting to me, because she thinks it would be the ultimate revenge to hurt Edward the same way...and it's going to distract her when she fights. She should be an easy target, with both you and Sam on her and the others already taken out. I could distance myself by the time the fight starts, get a few feet away."

"A few _feet? _Bella, you could be a damn continent away, and that's still not far enough for me. I can't let you do that. You can see why I can't let you do that, right?" He took both of her hands in his, pleading. _Fear. _So much of it, there, in his eyes.

_Baby, please don't do this to me. I need you. I've only just got you. I can't lose you._

Again, it was as clear as if he'd said it.

_I know._ She couldn't do this to him. She was just about to take it all back when Sam spoke.

"Jake, I know you don't like it, but she's got a point."

He dropped hands with Bella and whirled on Sam, growling.

"Hear me out," Sam went on, backing up a pace. "If this redhead hurts as bad as Bella says she does, then she _will_be more distracted if Bella's there. I'll bet that after she gets to Bella, she planned to off herself. It'll almost make it easy, because she might actually be begging for death, underneath all the fierce talk."

"Sam, I asked you to fight beside me as if she were Leah. Now I'm asking you to think about this as if she were Leah. Would you want _Lee_there?" Sam's face contorted in pain. "Exactly."

"Jake, I know you don't like it, man," Embry jumped in. "Hell, I don't like it. But it makes a lot of sense. I say once we track a fresh scent, we call Bella. Bring her to the meadow, let her wait. If this is a vendetta, the redhead's not going to make a quick attack. She's going to want Bella to know _exactly why_ she wants her. She's going to want to draw it out. She'll hold the others off until she does so…or better yet, she'll come alone. Hell, she might even tell Bella to get the bloodsucker on the line. The minute she strikes, we pounce."

"My dude, that might be the smartest shit you've said all day," Paul readily agreed, seeing the moutning fury on Jacob's face. If they all kept cutting him off, he couldn't explode. It was a smart plan, though it was short term. "I like it. I'm ready whenever y'all are."

There was a beat of silence, as Sam, Embry, and Paul all looked at Jake.

His eyes were closed, and he looked almost as still as a vampire. When he opened them, he looked straight at Jared, who had yet to say a word.

"The three of you don't get it," he finally said, slowly, taking one of her hands again. She exhaled a sigh of relief. This, she could handle.

_Calm down. Please, babe, be calm. _She concentrated with everything she had. His face visibly relaxed.

"Even if you have read your histories, you still don't fucking _know._" Jared nodded, his face as grim as Jake's. "Beyond carrying on the Alpha line, beyond all of that fucking tribal bullshit that Harry Clearwater and my fucking father have ingrained in your head; _if she dies, I go insane. _Or worse, if that bitch _bites_ her, and we can't get the shit out in time…" He shivered. _Calm,_ she reprimanded in her head. He shouldn't have to think about the possibility, not again.

"I would never ask Jared to put Kim out there, because I fucking _know._ If you knew, you wouldn't…." he trailed off, shaking his head. "But it's fine, because you don't. If we had another wolf, someone who's sole job would be to guard Bella, then maybe. _Maybe._ But we don't, so **we won't**. And that's it. My word is law. You don't like it? Fuck off and find yourselves another Pack. The end."

With that, he turned from them, and she followed.

Her first Pack meeting was over.

* * *

><p>Kim knew better then to ask why Jared was visibly shaken when he emerged from the trees. She just wrapped both arms around him and let him bury his face in her neck, breathing in her scent like Jake had done to Bella so many times already. Looking up, he traced her round cheeks with his fingers, no doubt with a feather light touch. He didn't speak words, but Bella knew he didn't have to. His eyes said it all. <em>I love you, I love you. Thank God this doesn't affect you. <em>Without another sound, they walked, hand in hand, to the Charger parked out front of Billy's house. They were gone moments later.

Leah was, of course, more vocal. "Why did you guys take so long? What the hell is wrong with Jared? What's going on, babe?" Sam shook his head, shot her an _I'll tell you later_ look, and told everyone see you later before heading out himself.

"Jake."

He looked up at Embry from his seat on the back porch.

"I'm sorry man. You're right. I don't know. It...it just seemed like a good idea at the time. Are we cool?" He stuck out his hand hopefully.

Jake assessed him, then let the even grin spread across his face. "Yeah, man. We're good. 'Sides, I can't stay mad at your ass. Who am I going to beat on Assassin's Creed?"

"Dude, you won that one last time because my damn thumbs started to hurt. Who the hell plays for five hours straight? You're a fucking psycho."

Between them, it seemed, it was just that easy.

Paul sauntered past them next, giving a nod goodbye before heading to his car. It seemed he, too, had let the issue go.

The sun was just starting to set behind the trees, and Jake still hadn't said anything to her.

"Jake."

He turned to her finally. "Bella, I-"

She silenced him with a kiss to the lips, which he readily returned. No, she didn't need him to apologize. She never needed him to apologize for being afraid to lose her. Their bond was worth protecting, and as she deepened the kiss, she wanted to remember _why. _

For once, she didn't let her normal tirade of _control, control, don't lose yourself _fill her brain. Their kisses got more passionate, as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her impossibly closer.

The part of her that _loved_ him finally reared her head, grasping control for the second time. It was the part that had loved him for lifetimes before this one, and that would continue to love him for lifetimes after. She traced her tongue around his, sending all the love she had into the kiss. He gasped around her lips, and he pulled back from her, eyes once again sun-colored. The man that adored her gazed back at her in awe, running his fingers through her hair, and she wondered blithely why this incarnation of herself wouldn't just _give in._

_This _was bliss. _This _was heaven.

Deep, deep down, Bella wondered the same thing herself.


	9. Chapter 9: Ang & Plan Change Deux

**_A/N: (peeks out from behind covers) Yeah, I'm back. No, I have no idea how much time I'll have to keep this going. Yes, I do plan on finishing this, one day. You try writing full time for a living, taking care of a toddler and AND writing as a side hobby! _**

**_j.k., but seriously, y'all. Lucky if I get a chance to breathe around here._**

**_Also, I'm ditching the POV titles in the beginning. You guys know who's talking. And this shit right here? Total, total filler. _**

**_Thanks to taoistelf, lifelesslyndsey, and a ton of other talented writers on here for giving me the inspiration to start this back up again._**

Today, she was going to try.

That was the last he was going to hear on the subject.

"You haven't talked to people in what, months? Do you even have any friends in Forks?" He was bringing her to school that morning, and it hit him all of a sudden. The girl was nearing the end of her junior year, and he hadn't heard two words about her social life since before he'd phased. It just wasn't healthy.

She cringed, then looked at him with fire in her eyes. "What does it matter to you if I do or don't? Why does it matter that I talk to anyone? As long as I graduate on time, keep from getting killed, and keep your Pack's secrets, that should be the last you've got to say about it, shouldn't it?"

"_My _pack? It's _your _pack too, Ms. Difficult. And it matters. You need someone else to talk to. You can't just go to school and be a recluse."

"Why the hell not? And I do talk to people, Jake. I talk to Leah, and I talk to Kim."

"That's different. They're family."

She was getting red in the face now, she was so mad. It was pretty fucking adorable.

"I talk to Angela," she continued, through gritted teeth.

"Since when?"

She was silent for a minute. Jake smirked. "We talk in class," she said defiantly. "We talked…I don't know, a week ago?"

"You probably only asked her about homework."

"I did not!"

"I bet you did. Bella, when you lived in Arizona I used to hear all about Caley or whatever her name is-"

"_Carey. _Carey was her name."

"And what guys she was with and what the two of you did together, and ever since you got back, I hear nothing about her, or anyone here. It's like you don't have a life outside of your house, work, and the pack."

"Are you trying to fucking say that I _don't have a life?"_

"That's _exactly_ what the fuck I'm saying," he mumbled, turning into the parking lot of Forks High.

"Fuck you, Jake! You're one to fucking talk, you don't do shit outside of Pack stuff. And when was the last time I saw you hanging around Quil, huh? It's been screw Quil since you phased. You can't talk shit about me, you're ten times worse." She scoffed, about to pull on the door handle to get out.

She stopped when he didn't reply. How could he? It's not like she knew.

_She would know, if only she thought about the things she said before they flew out of her mouth, _another part of him thought darkly.

"Now you're quiet, huh?" she continued to goad, oblivious.

He just stared at her, without saying anything, until the smirk on her face evaporated.

"I don't talk to Quil, because I _can't," _he said finally, looking away from her. "He's not pack. At least, not yet. I changed the edict so mothers, fathers, and other family members would be let in on a need-to-know basis, but that doesn't include best friends. It could put him in unnecessary danger if he knew. Trust me when I say that I wish I could. The kid hates me and Embry because we just _ditched _him." He paused, something dark flitting to the front of his mind. "I'm sure he thinks we're on drugs, like all the others."

"Jake, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"S'alright. You didn't know." He said quickly. She wasn't looking at him anymore either, and he could see her lip quivering from the corner of his eye. "Hey." He turned her face back to his. "_Really,_ Bells, it's ok. I only asked about your friends because it's not like I can have any. I wanted to make sure _one _of us has a fucking life," he finished bitterly.

"What about school for you?" she said suddenly. "For Em, Paul, and the others? You don't talk to people there?"

He shook his head with a slight smile. There was a lot she didn't know. "Bells, I haven't been in school since I phased. When I'm not hanging with you, or patrolling, I'm studying for my GED. Me, Paul, Em and Jared all dropped out."

She was looking at him with an almost comical mix of frustration and horror. "And Sam, what about him?"

"He's out; graduated before all this shit started happening. Works in construction with his uncle. The two of them are starting to make pretty good money fixing up houses and buildings around the Rez, Forks, and Seattle. But the rest of us are all in the same boat."

"But Jake, a GED?" she said softly, almost pleadingly. "You're so much smarter than that. You can go to college and major in engineering, or get into construction like Sam, or something. You're good with numbers; you always were."

He shook his head again. "I'm better with cars. When cars on the Rez break down, people have to tow them all the way to Forks or Seattle to get them fixed. Em and I were talking about it, and that's what we're going to do afterward. Pool our money together with Paul; buy a tow truck. Paul can handle the towing, me and Em will fix up the cars. We'll work out of my dad's garage until we can afford a place of our own. It's not a bad plan, Bella," he said firmly, as the bell for her first period started to ring.

He didn't know why he felt the need to defend himself, but all of a sudden he did.

"You're going to be late." he added, with another tinge of finality.

"I know." She didn't move from the truck, although he was blocking the school's main entrance. Both were silent.

"It's a good plan, Jake." She finally said. He knew she didn't mean to be, but her words felt patronizing. "I just wish things were different. Wish that you could go to Seattle; hell, go to damn Dartmouth if you wanted. Get away from the Rez, if that's what you wanted to do."

"Is that what you want to do?" he couldn't stop himself from asking.

"No. A thousand times no." To his relief, she didn't hesitate. "Dartmouth really isn't my kind of place. I don't really know what I want to do with my life, to be honest. Maybe Peninsula for two years, and then transfer to somewhere in Seattle?"

Fuck yes. God yes. Port Angeles was an hour drive, twenty minute run. Transfer in two years if she wanted. Do whatever she wanted, as long as she stayed in-state. He tried to hide his smile.

"That sounds a like a great plan." Fantastic was a better word choice. "And fuck, you'll figure it out. If you don't, we could always use someone to handle paperwork when we get the business going. Quil and Embry are smart enough, I guess, but I'd really rather someone with a degree of some sort be handling that shit. He leaned in and kissed her soundly, effectively ended all continued conversation.

"Now, go." He said headily, reigning his more primal side in to ignore the dampness that was starting to blossom between her legs.

She stared at him dazedly. Then, realizing his trick, flipped him the bird (to his _utter_ astonishment) and jumped out of the cab.

**-*832uy4824y03*-**

Nothing like a little vanity to get the….friendship? juices flowing. She was brushing her hair in the girls' bathroom and *gasp* applying mascara. And a little bit of lip gloss.

Just because she'd _been_ a zombie for an undisclosed amount of time after that first breakup, didn't mean she'd have to _look _ like one when she finally got the guts to talk to her friends again.

That is, if she still had some when it was all said and done.

It's not like she was a self-centered person. Really, she wasn't. Yes, giving, loving people don't just dump their friends for months and months while they go into full on zombie phase over an ex, but _said_ giving and loving people also don't typically have dazzling supernatural creatures who profess to be their soul mates as exes, either.

Granted, she didn't have a have a life outside of him, but that was only because he was somuch _larger than life. _

And his immortal family, too.

Problem was, she couldn't tell that to Angela. (Fuck Jessica, Mike and Lauren.)

She sighed, then bent down and flipped her hair back up, like they do in movies. She hoped she looked alive enough now.

Sauntering out the bathroom and trying not to trip over her own feet, she walked down the hall and into 3rd period.

Angela was sitting in the last row, a few chairs over from Tyler, like always.

She bit her lip, and then sat down.

"Hi, Ang," she said softly.

The other girl blinked, a little startled. "Bella? Hey. Is everything ok?" Nothing but concern was in her eyes.

Bella, you fucking suck.

Balls, she added, as an afterthought.

"Everything's fine. I know I really, really suck balls."_ Well, damn, B, tell her how you _really_ feel. _

Ang raised her eyebrow, a hint of smirk playing on her face.

"Wait...I mean, that's not how I wanted that to come out. I mean, I'm not a really good friend. Haven't been for a while. No _normal girl _breaks down like that after they break up with someone. I know I've got a lot of issues –" - co-dependency, soulmate confusion, a Wolf with a supernatural mandate to screw her brains out on a regular basis, to name a few - "but I really, _really_ don't want losing one of my best friends to be one of them. Would you be totally opposed to it if we completely forgot that this past year happened?"

Ang twirled her brown hair around her finger, studying Bella's face. She hoped she looked as sincere as she felt.

"I suppose we can move on. Maybe try to be friends again. But not completely forget. Because, if we forget all about it, how can we learn from it?" She asked seriously. "I'm big on forgiveness, but not on forgetting. If you ditch me again, I want to _remember_ why I should never speak to you; remember why you're full of it."

Bella didn't remember Angela being this saucy. But then again, she'd never screwed up so badly with her, either.

"I think that's an acceptable method," Bella said, slowly.

"Good." Ang smiled brightly. "With that all out the way, why don't you tell me who's the lucky guy that got you out of your months-long funk?"

Bella blushed. "How did you know it was another guy?"

"Please. Us girls never fully recover until another Mr. Tall dark and handsome comes along. Although, in the case of your tastes, I suppose it would be Mr. Tall, super Pale and drop-dead gorgeous..."

"Actually, I'm done with the pale faces for now." She laughed at her choice of her words.

"His name is Jake..."

After Ang listened to her babble for the next 20 minutes, Bella sat with her at lunch, much to the awe of the old crowd. She shot shockingly sincere smiles to everyone, but mostly stayed quiet or talked directly only to Angela. Jake had said she had to be friendly - not fake.

At the end of the day, she felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She got her old friend back, plus one, because Ang and Ben were package deal. The couple was supposed to come by one weekend and meet Jake and the guys, and the other imprints.

After this whole shit with Victoria was done, of course.

**-*832uy4824y03*-**

Bella had given Jake strands of her hair and would prick her thumb to smear drops of her blood onto several trees. There was a deep pond nearby. To give an element of surprise as well as mask the wolf scent, Paul and Embry would phase and lay in wait, with just their noses tipped above the surface to breathe. Jake and Sam would be in trees high above where she'd smeared her blood.

Jared would be the frontrunner, the first wolf they'd see. He and Em would go for Laurent, as planned, once Em burst through the surface.

That was the original plan.

But Jake had decided that it wasn't enough, two days before they were supposed to go ahead.

"It's a good plan, Jake," she appeased, tracing the muscles flexing from his arms. They'd met on Charlie's front porch to regroup, before they'd told the other wolves.

"No, actually, it's not. Actually, it sucks. And I can't believe I didn't see it sooner."

He was going to beat himself up over it, she knew.

"What will happen to you, Kim, and Leah? Who's going to guard y'all? We still don't have any other wolves. I'm an idiot."

"You're not an idiot." Emotional, caring, but never an idiot. She added.

He'd allowed his complete insanity over making sure that she was safe…. to cloud his judgment, and possibly put her in harm's way. The imprints would be all in one house, alone. If she were a vampire, it would be the first place she'd go.

"Who's the closest to phasing, you think?"

"Quil's so fricking hot you could fry an egg on him, Old Quil keeps claiming."

"And he's already pissed that you won't hang out with him. What if…" She scrunched her eyebrows together.

"What if what?"

"Is it possible to force a phase?"

"Bells-"

"Nothing. Forget I said it. He deserves a little more time, to be a kid-"

"He deserves nothing. Bells, that was brilliant."

"Really?"

"Really. We crowd him, piss him off about something, and then pick and pick until he explodes. It's his destiny, Bells; he can't hide from it anymore than I can. We're just speeding things along."

"But would he know everything he needs to know to take the three of them on? In just a few days?"

"No. But he wouldn't be fighting. He'd be guarding, back at the house, on the off chance that one of them slips away and heads for y'all. He'd only have to hold it off a few minutes, max, before we get there."

"Then-"

"The only question is-"

"When?" They looked up at each other.

"I think it has to be tonight."


	10. Chapter 10: Showtime

There was never anything good on television anymore, and he was bored out of his mind.

Quil flipped through the channels, blinking blankly at the screen. Over the drum of the television, drops of water from the roof's eave kept splashing down and hitting….a leaf? A tree? The ground? Whatever it was, it was loud as hell, and annoying. It rained too damn much on the peninsula.

If he was being honest with himself, a few rounds of Family Guy on Netflix would have given him something to do for the next few hours, at least. And then he could go for a jog or hit the weights for a little while, until he passed out from exhaustion.

The problem: tomorrow, he'd have to do it all over again.

Such had been his routine for the last month, ever since Jake joined the screw-Quil-and-suck Uley's-dick brigade.

It wasn't the diss itself that surprised him; since Em left months ago, he'd guarded his trust with steel ball and chain. What stumped him about Jake's sudden chucking of the deuces was how vehement he'd been about _not_ linking up with the one guy they (and most other guys their age on the Rez) hated with a passion.

Jake had always been averse to anyone who visibly led, bullied, or tried to lord over anyone else. And Sam Uley was the guy who thought the sun shone up his ass, and seemed to have no trouble convincing the tribe's council of that possibility.

Still...Jake, Em, Paul Lahote and Jared Cameron were all with the shifty eyes, bulging muscles and dont-fuck-with-me sneers. It made Quil sick.

What was worse, though, was there was something more. Because Quil noticed things.

He noticed how, shortly after Jake went missing, Em's mom stopped pinning Quil with desperate gazes whenever she saw him in the Rez store. Before, she would actually try to get some intel from him about Em's nighttime rounds – though, up until recently, she'd just stared, not bothering to again ask a question that never brought forth any answers.

Now, she smiled at him.

And _his_ mom...despite he, Jake, Em, and many of the kids on the Rez thinking that the shit that was going on with Uley's gang was bad news, Joy never seemed fazed. (Neither did his grandfather, but it took a lot to rattle the old man's bones these days.) On the contrary: snippets of what looked like relief would pass her face each time there came word of a new boy sucked into whatever shit Uley was peddling. When he questioned her about it, she shot back that there were some questions he wouldn't like the answers to, and that its folks' own business who they want to strike up friendships with.

The simultaneous nonchalance and not-so-subtle warning was enough to drive Quil up a wall.

She never bothered to ask how he felt about Em and Jake bailing. Maybe, if she had, he could talk it out and come to some semblance of peace with it. For now, he was trying to keep it locked in a dusty, remote corner of his brain, which he'd long ago dubbed the 'fuck-this-shit' box.

_Grades dropping in school? Eh, teacher doesn't like me, fuck this shit._

_Third girl in a row I've had a thing for turn me down? Who needs chicks anyway, fuck this shit._

_Best friends abandon you? They are probably sucking Sam off anyway. Fuck them and their shit._

Pretending to watch television was getting him nowhere, and Joy wasn't getting home until late – not that she'd be much for conversation when she did get here. He snapped the little box off, swung himself up off the red couch, and plowed his way out of the back door toward his dad's garage, the one place in the house he felt most at peace.

Wiping the light rain from his face as he started outside, he stumbled and nearly fell over as he saw a hulking figure he hadn't laid eyes on close up in about four months, leaning on the yellow garage's doors without a care in the world.

Embry Fucking Call.

Quil felt a burning sort of sensation go down his spine. The adrenaline, the anger, the shock...it was too much, seeing him here. Super chill, as if nothing had happened.

"What are you doing here?" he managed to call out, trying and failing to keep his voice from shaking.

"Just checking in. It's been a while." the stranger called back coolly, opening the garage doors easily and walking in out of the rain.

Like he could. Like he had the right to walk into anything that was Quil's.

Quil plowed earth behind him and stormed into his garage, leaving the doors swinging wildly behind him. Embry had clicked on the room's dull yellow light and was fucking lounging on his dad's favorite chair.

Again, it was too much.

"A while?" Quil sneered, clenching his fists. "Try months. What, Uley ditch you? And get the fuck up. _You don't get to sit._"

The stranger in front of him shot him_ a look_, but slowly rose.

"Sam has nothing to do with why I've been gone." Em said slowly, as if he were talking to a child.

"The hell he doesn't." The whole condescending bit was pissing him off, and he'd only been talking to the dick for 5 seconds. He took a deep, steadying breath. _Calm, Quil. Be calm._

Maybe there was a good reason for it all, that he wasn't aware of. Em was here, right? That had to count for something.

He tried again, forcing the emotions out of his voice. "You've been MIA. And you made Jake come with you."

At that, a cold smirk spread across Embry's face. "Trust me when I say that no one forced Jake into anything."

"So he_ wanted_ to run off with the great juiced-up freaks of La Push?"

_"He wanted to get away from you."_

A voice that was unmistakeably Sam Uley's spat out like knives over the pattering of raindrops outside.

Quil froze, and then immediately pushed past Embry and stalked outside. There, in the flesh, was the reason all of his friends were gone. With Lahote and Cameron flanking him like the puppies they were.

Jake was nowhere in sight.

The voice – rumbling and sarcastic, gave a mirthless laugh. "You heard me. He said you were starting to get whiny."

"You son-of-a-" He could barely get the words out as he charged at him, his fist sounding off against the side of the larger man's face like stone hitting stone. He was surprised at how rock solid Sam seemed to be, but pleased to see he'd drawn blood at his lip.

Uley's flunkies advanced on Quil; lips curled like animals and promises of pain in their eyes. He refused to back down, glaring back at them with every bit of menace they were throwing his way. He felt a movement behind him and whipped his head around - _fucking Embry_ was moving in on him, all trace of smirks and annoying condescension gone from his posture. Em looked every bit as mean as Lahote and Cameron.

Every bit as mean as fucking Sam, the dope dealer they were protecting.

Who needs friends when you've got rocks, or 'roids, or whatever sick combo they were on that ringed their eyes with dark shadows and made them shake for the next fix?

The supplier's shoulders began to shake in just that way, but he remained rooted, eyes shut, until the tremors stopped. Shaking his head quickly and opening his eyes, he looked up at Quil with a cruel smirk.

"Nice," he intoned. "This might be easier than we thought."

"The fuck it will be. I know why you're here. All of you. And I don't want any part of it. Sell that crack shit to someone else. I don't smoke rock, or meth, or take pills, or whatever the fuck you're doing."

At that, Lahote, of all people, wiped the snarl from his face and laughed. "Live above the influence and all that, huh, Ateara? You sound like me when Sam and 'Red first came my way. Only now I wish it had been a little blow...wouldn't be as bad as this.

This shit right here, Q?" - he waved his hand down the length of his massive shape -"You dont snort it up your nose or suck it through a pipe. This shit's inside either got it, or you don't."

"And we're a thousand percent sure you got it, pup," Sam finished briskly. "So.

"Ready to dance, or what?"

One moment, Quil thought he saw Sam move; a split second later, Quil was splayed out on the muddy ground beneath him, head still swinging from the force behind the punch. He spat something hot and wet out onto the ground that had formed in his mouth, and looked up at the great hulk in shock.

Sam laughed.

"What, thought you'd smack me around and I wouldn't get to play?"

Quil found his voice. "You were there, and then you were here..." he trailed off, looking at Sam incredulously. Staggering up from the ground, his wet clothes not much mattering anymore, he turned to Embry, whose eyes were still cold.

Whatever shit Em was on...this wasn't right.

"This isn't you, Embry. I don't know these assholes, but you...you were never like this. We...we've been cool forever." He said quietly, wiping the blood from his mouth.

"Times change Quil. People change. I've changed." His face was still a blank, but Quil thought his eyes softened, just a little.

"It doesn't have to be like this, man. Whatever this son-of-a-bitch shot you up with, we can get you help. You can get your life back, back to-"

He was cut off by a mirthless, sarcastic chuckle that he never thought would belong to Embry.

"My life back? _My life back?_ No, Quil. This is my life now, and I can't get anything back. You always were naïve as shit." His gaze became...wistful. Turning away from Quil and towards the mountains behind them, his face hardened again. "There's a whole other world out there, Ateara, where monsters and demons get in the way of me having a normal life. Where tribe, and duty, and tradition strips my chances of ever going to college or getting away from this god forsaken fucking reservation. Takes my dreams away from me and spits on them like they're nothing."

He turned steely eyes on Quil.

"But you know the one thing that makes all this shit better?

_"I don't have to do it alone."_ And he cocked back and struck Quil again across the face.

Quil stumbled, reeling, but this time he didn't fall. He vaguely remembered the last time he and Embry got into a fist fight... they'd been 8 or 9.

It was over Manda Lire, an 11-year-old with long hair and a saucy attitude who was way out of their leagues, anyway.

"C'mon Ateara! Don't leave me stuck out," the stranger with Em's face taunted. He pushed him this time, hard, and Quil hit the muddy ground again, landing on his hip. The sound it made when it cracked hurt Quil's ears, and Embry smiled.

He felt another white hot tremor go down his spine; it was like something was clawing to the surface from inside him. Paul, Jared and Sam all took a step back, eyes trained on Quil's form.

He'd thought they were going to jump him, but they seemed content on watching his former best friend pummel his face into lumps.

"That's it. Let it out." Embry's smirk had turned into a feral grin and curled lips, watching intently as his shape started to blur.

Whatever it was, it had started to pull at him - until he shook it off, crawled up on his knees, and punched Embry in the gut with every thing he had. When he doubled over, Quil uppercut his chin and watched with satisfaction as his head jerked back and he fell backwards on the ground.

When they'd fought over Manda, Quil had won.

Getting up on his feet, he stared down at Embry.

"I'm going to help you, Call; even if you hate me for it. Because like I said, this ain't you. First, I'm going to kick all three of these dicks' asses for ruining your life."

He then threw a punch at Sam, only to have the cocky motherfucker catch it mid swing. With a sneer plastered on his face that made something in him quiver, the larger man twisted his arm until another cracking noise sliced through the misty air, and he yelped in pain. Sam shook his head, looking to Embry. "He told you; taking it easy on him wasn't going to cut it."

Embry had already gotten up and was tugging at his chin. Face still carefully blank; he shrugged.

"Besides Q, you shouldn't take your anger out on him; and definitely not on me. We're just the warm-up." And he grinned looking just behind Quil. Slowly, painfully, Quil twisted in his grip, finally turning around to see none other than Jacob Black- eyes glowing an inhuman, incandescent yellow.

"This is _his_ show."

*****$&4&3&4^3*4&3*****

Bella had just about chewed her fingernails to the bone, and Leah had taken to cursing at the Mariners game, even though she didn't understand a thing about baseball. They were in Jared's mom's house, the closest one to Quil's.

Kim and Jared's mom were busying themselves cleaning the kitchen from top to bottom while they all waited on the boys. His dad was busy cursing at the TV with Leah.

And Bella was freaking out. It had been three hours since the boys left for Quil's house. And no word from any of them.

"Kim..."

"What, Bella?"

"Maybe it wasn't the best idea."

"It was brill, don't doubt it. Besides..." – she moved past Bella to scrub a stubborn stain from the corner of the counter – "we would know if something went wrong, remember?" She rapped against her head with a smile. "The freaky-imprint-bonding thing wouldn't let us down."

Bella breathed. "It wouldn't, would it?" she agreed easily. "Still, I'm a mess. I don't know what...since they left...I'm just-"

"You just need to find something you're good at, and freaking go at it for a few, you know? That's why I'm all Molly the Maid right now. And why Leah's exercising her potty mouth."

"You're just as bad, bitch!" the potty mouth in question yelled from the living room. Jared's dad chuckled, and Kim grimaced. Bella guessed because she wasn't ready to let her future in-laws know that yet.

"Something I'm good at..." she mumbled, then widened her lips in an "O" of recognition. "Ms. Cameron, do you have any flour?"

"The cabinet on your right, honey, and Ms. Cameron was my mother, not me. If you don't mind, it's always been just Sheila." The curvy woman with hair nearly as long as Leah's looked up from the pot she'd been scrubbing to grin at her.

"Thanks...Sheila." Bella said slowly, looking over at Kim, who winked.

She set herself to work on enough blueberry muffins to feed a small army. Measuring, sifting and stirring the flour, baking powder and sugar set her in a fine rhythm and got her thoughts to wandering properly.

Before she knew it, the smell of baking bread was filling the house, and she found herself imagining the feel of Jacob's hands pressed against her face. She hadn't kissed him right before he left; she'd known he'd wanted to get the timing just right to get to Quil. She was now imagining his smell – pine and earth and rain and something else that was just him, and soon her fantasies had the smell of him rising above and nearly overpowering the muffins in the oven.

Wait.

"Kim," she breathed.

"Yeah?"

"I think they're coming." Sure enough, his scent was getting more pronounced, and she felt a tightening in her chest, her body already realigning itself to the direction he was coming in. Kim looked out of the window, eyes wide and fixated on the trudging figures coming up the lawn. "Jay," she said quietly, and nearly flew to open the front door.

Bella looked to the window herself, surprised to see only Jared, Embry and Sam walking in exhausted succession. Their shoulders slumped and their eyes were dim, especially Embry's.

And his entire face looked haunted.

They finally made it to the living room, and Bella went into the fridge and plucked three sodas, wordlessly handing one to each man, who were now seated not far from their imprints or girlfriends, or sitting alone and unusually close-mouthed.

Several more beats of agonizing quiet passed, until Mr. Cameron rose and shut off the television, bidding everyone goodnight. Sheila soon followed, but not before giving a reassuring squeeze to Bella's arm. While they both supported and were aware of pack activities, they tried to stay as far as possible from Pack business, as did the other parents and in-the-know family members, Kim had told her.

They did as much for their own benefit as they did for their children's, Bella suspected, as many of them still needed to hang on to the delusion that their 16, 17 and 18 year olds were still just that, and not shouldering the burden of keeping thousands safe.

When they'd crept up to their room, Bella closed her eyes and inhaled, to check. He was still close; in fact, he must be just outside. "Sam," she finally said quietly, more a statement than a question.

He spared her a glance under a furrowed brow. "We got it done," he replied gruffly, his pop of the soda top doing nothing to cut through the escalating tension in the room. He drunk it deeply, considering, then spoke again. "He can't-"

"Phase back," she cut him off, giving a curt head bob in recognition and feeling some of the tension leave her own body. She knew, from listening to Jake, that it had taken the others hours, sometimes days. Leah, who'd tucked herself in closer to Sam's side, moved his hair from his face and gently placed it behind his ear. Bella took a steadying breath, and then looked to the oven.

"Kim, can you take them out, when they're done? Shouldn't be any longer than a few minutes."

"Not a problem," Kim's head nodded a little too enthusiastically while her gaze was still trained on Jared, who also hadn't yet taken his eyes from hers. Bella watched his bottom lip twitch, so quick she thought she'd imagined it, until Kim covered it in her hand. He closed his eyes in relief, pulling her closer and kissing the hand in response, the tension leaving his face as quickly as it came.

"I'll go check on them." She moved past the intertwined Kim and Jared, navigated around Paul's huge, stretched out form, and paused at Embry's place in the hard red chair that was closest to the door.

She put her hand softly on his shoulder.

Quick as lightning, his head jerked up in response, a hint of confusion in his dead eyes. She shook off the reflexive shiver that came along with seeing him this way.

"Thank you." She said quietly, but firmly. He raised a brow, more confused than ever.

"For helping to make us safe." _Even when it cost you._ She didn't say the words, but his expression softened slightly, as if the sentiment was received.

Finally, he nodded. She moved past him and went to the door. "If I'm not back in a few, I'll see y'all tomorrow," she threw back to the rest of the room, closing the door on the murmurs of assent.


	11. Chapter 11: Comfort and Need

She followed her nose to the woven little path outside of Jared's house, covered by brush and trees, save a horse-sized clearing in the middle. It was like her senses were on hyper-alert; she could almost taste the confusion, anger, and lingering remnants of terror in the air.

She'd asked Jake not to go _too_ hard on him.

Taking a deep breath to settle herself, she pushed her way through the wet moss and broken yew branches. She was only a few feet through when she saw them both: first the mammoth-size, regal russet and reddish brown animal with eyes of golden yellow, seated so calmly it nearly reminded her of the stillness of the undead creatures she'd aligned herself with months ago. Despite its stoicism, every fiber of its being was trained on the quivering deep chocolate mass in front of it.

Quil was about the size of a panther with none of the grace. He reminded her of a skittish alleycat.

She watched him continue to pace the length of the circular clearing, Jacob's yellow eyes following his form like a pendulum. She guessed they were having a silent conversation.

The big russet brown animal turned its great head her way and she stopped in her advance. Realizing this was the first time since he'd imprinted that she had seen him like this, she slowly closed the distance between them both and decided to savor the moment, running her pale fingers through his baby soft mane and enjoying the lick of warmth that ran through her body at the touch.

"Jacob." she finally said.

He sat a little straighter.

"I just want to talk to him." The great beast paused. Finally, it cocked its head to the side, acquiescing.

The other wolf was still wild-eyed and pacing as if she wasn't there.

"I know its hard to wrap your head around this. And I don't know….I don't know what they said to you. Before."

She inched a little closer to Quil, and Jacob whimpered in protest. She ignored him.

"I could come out here and tell you that none of it was true, that they just said it to rile you up...

"But we both know I'd be lying."

Quil stopped in his tracks. Ignoring the action, she bent down and picked at a stray muddy pinecone, taking her time with what came next.

"Words said in anger… there's always a bit of truth, laced with the venom. But you know what parts were important, and what parts weren't. What parts were real truth.

"They need you, and that's as true as it gets. Not just for fighting. And, me...well, it'll be nice to have you back in my face making corny jokes and coming on to me, because turning you down is pretty fun." She grinned at him, even though he still wasn't looking at her face. Jake did a wolfish version of rolling his eyes.

"I'll let you and Jake finish this, but I just wanted to come out and say don't make us wait too long. There's muffins in the oven tonight, and I'm pretty sure they'll be stewed chicken at Charlie's house tomorrow." She bit her lip, unsure what to say next. "Well, then."

"I'll just head back." She turned back towards to the house, when she felt a gentle little nudge at the small of her back that went through her like wildfire. She whipped around and Jake rubbed his massive head into her stomach gently and lazily. She felt almost drugged with the sensation, and when he finally pulled away, the jolt back to reality was unwelcome.

After she trudged back towards the house, she only made it through the friendly banter for a few more minutes before she politely excused herself, hopped in the old red cab, and gunned it for home.

When she heard the gentle rapping at her window hours after she'd pulled the covers over her head, she threw it open without a second thought and watched him swing up into the room, those worn cutoffs hanging off of his wet frame. She watched the raindrops drip from his bare chest onto her floor for a split second before he launched himself at her. Nuzzling his nose into her hair and gently pushing her back onto the bed, he wrapped his arms wrapped tightly around her middle and pulled her down comforter over them both. Taking several inhales into her shoulder, he finally spoke.

"What Em and Sam said to him, it wasn't that bad."

"Really?"

"No. Not compared to what I had to say."

She wasn't surprised that Quil could smell Embry's bullshit a mile away. People you've known your whole life didn't just switch up on you – and Quil was more perceptive then he let on.

"He would have gone on thinking it was the drugs talking, that Em and I had gotten swooped up in a gang. He wouldn't have gotten it, Bella." She'd known they'd said messed up things to him before, to get him off their tail after they'd phased. He'd probably just thought it was more of the same.

She nodded into his cheek. "So...you had to say things that were true, but not really."

"I told him that the real reason why Embry hates him now is because he can't hate Quil's dad, the asshole that never claimed him as his own son...Bells, I told him Embry's his brother."

She froze, then she tilted his face up so their eyes met. Her heart ached at the shame in his face.

"But you can't know that for sure. And you told him that after, right?"

He shook his head mutely.

"Jake?"

"They look like they're related, Bella, more than any of us do. And would make sense that no one's said anything about it. Because there's nothing to say."

She opened her mouth in protest, but then snapped it closed when she thought it through. A dead man's past was filled with secrets, and half-truths and accusations only brought shame on those who dared disrespect his memory. "So...is that what Embry thinks?'

"He told me once that he suspected, but never that he resented Quil. I know Embry well enough to know it would never be like that. But... he wonders why he was never wanted, and sometimes these little...comparisons, I guess you'd call them, come up in conversation."

A half-lie, then, sprinkled with just enough of the truth to make it plausible. He'd played on Quil's greatest weakness: in his eyes, his deceased dad could do no wrong.

"But the fucked up part about it? It _still_ didn't work. And before I knew it, I'd gone all feral on him, and the wolf just reached down and _pulled_ it out out of him. That's the only way I can describe it. And when he finally phased, I could see it.. He was so fucking loyal to us that right up until he realized he was all paws, he was still gunning for Sam."

To her shock, his voice shook with his next words.

"He doesn't deserve this, any of it."

She clasped her hand in his. "None of you do," she offered quietly.

Especially not him. Her Jake shouldn't have to carry this burden alone… she didn't even wince at the possessiveness that reared up, fierce and ugly in her mind. There was no question that she would help him whenever she could, and she realized that she'd done just that tonight without even thinking about it. That she'd been doing it, without realizing it, for a while now. "How did...how did he do, you know, after?"

"When you came out, he was still trying to wrap his head around it. I think seeing you, still being _you_, despite all this bullshit, helped. I mean, I can be me around him, but I've also got to be his Alpha. It's not the same me he's used to."

They were both quiet for a moment, listening to the rain pelt the ground outside.

"You know, a week ago you would have ended that sentence with, 'it's not the same me I'm used to, either.' Getting used to the whole Alpha thing quicker than you thought?" she finally said with a grin.

He chuckled, and the sound made her stomach flip.

"Eh, well. It's not so bad. There's this girl...she makes it a lot better." She laughed, then found her gaze resting on his lips. Moving forward almost unconsciously, she kissed his cheek. Then, the corner of his mouth. Then, full on, on the lips.

Their tongues danced lazily, and she felt the tiredness in his bones, which compounded with her own. When he pulled away from her, he just looked at her with a contented smile, and she drowned a little in that stare.

She didn't remember how long they stayed thay way, foreheads pressed together and shamelessly breathing the others' scent. But when Charlie gave his routine holler up the stairs to tell her he was headed out, her eyes snapped open to the first rays of morning streaming through the still open window and Jake's arms still wrapped securely around her.

She flicked her eyes back to his face to find lips curled up in a sexy smirk that belied the intensity of his black eyes on hers. She felt like a dessert he was about to devour, his oldest and most valued posession, and the eighth world wonder he had just discovered all at once. A tiny shiver ran down her spine.

She could get used to this.

He dipped his head and slowly sniffed the length of her collarbone, which turned her shiver up a considerable notch. The side of her jaw was next, his nose rubbing back and forth into her cheek in a rhythm. Something wet and hot then slid in the space behind her ear, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head before she eased them closed.

The rubbing and touching was admittedly confusing, but the sensations it produced? Oh, so welcome.

She felt like she was drowning and dancing on a cloud all at once, particularly when his tongue moved to the spot on her neck just above her artery. She felt her blood pulsing under his tongue, and before she could stop herself, she unwillingly thought back to a prom night that felt like forever ago, the last time a cooler mouth had teasingly mashed against that spot, leaving her both thrilled and terrified beyond belief.

As if the man pressed there now heard her musing, he gave her a punishing little nip in that spot, not hard enough to leave a mark but just enough to get her attention. Her eyes snapped open. "_Mine,"_ his muffled voice barked out almost angrily, putting his teeth down again to drive the point home.

"Yours," she agreed breathlessly, inwardly chastising herself for subconsciously equating the ice cold touch of his worst enemy with his expert hands, which always left her hot all over.

_"All yours,"_ she added, as he moved his nose to her left shoulder, then moved his cheek in a rhythm back and forth, like he'd done with the jaw earlier. Because she got it now...he was scenting her but also leaving his scent behind, as best he could without giving into the mating instinct and leaving it buried deep within her. Waking up in the morning next to her must have triggered the never-far-from-the-surface urge, and he, ever-respectful of her wishes and trying to keep his own in mind, needed this - and she couldn't deny that need.

She leaned forward, giving him as much access as she could.

He began to make a contented little humming noise, so low it sounded like vibrations and was strangely soothing.

He passed over one of the straps of her thin camisole and gently nudged it off with his chin, then did the same thing with the other side. Her breasts now hung loosely, the hardened nipples visible through the flimsy fabric and nearly peaking out of the cami's top.

His nuzzling ran lower, and she shifted in place, thighs pressing together futilely to mask her arousal. Unable to bite it back, she let out a moan, and he chuckled, then ran his tongue swiftly and directly down the valley of her breasts, causing the top to promptly crash down to her midriff and the two soft globes to spring free.

The way he stared at them, like a man seeing a freshwater lake after spending weeks in a desert, made her core pulse.

He laid gentle kisses to her mounds, alternating between kissing, licking and just pressing his face into the breasts. Her legs opened wider - again, of their own accord - while his earthy scent surrounded and consumed her like dried moss set aflame.

Accepting the unconscious invitation, he nestled between her legs even more securely, his erection making itself known against her inner thigh. "Jake," she whispered, almost like a prayer.

"Bells," he murmured reverently in response. His breath hovered over the peak of one of her nipples torturously, tongue still pressed cruelly behind his teeth instead of in its rightful spot on her skin.

She began to feel his anticipation, wrapped all up in her own and coursing through every inch of both of their bodies. Another moan tumbled from her lips, and a similar whimper fell unbidden from his own before his tongue grazed the bud.

The feeling was exquisite, and a fresh pool dampened her panties. In that moment, she realized: it wasn't about comfort or scent. It was about _need,_ just as it had always been, from that fateful moment in the forest when he imprinted.

From the moment they both took their first breaths, and through each pass, in and out of this world, for thousands of years.

And, then, she fucking lost it.

His tongue had barely made a second sweep across her bud before she was unzipping his pants so his erect penis could stand proud. Cut and weeping at its tip, it was huge and mushroomy and more beautiful then she'd ever imagined it would be erect. If she had to guess, she'd say it was easily 10 inches long and probably more, seeing as she had no prior experience when it came to sizing these things.

His shock and her own was only amplified when she collected the tip's fluid and brought it to her lips, savoring it like the sweetest wine.

The tangy taste was foreign, yet gut wrenchingly familiar. In a voice she barely recognized as her own, she whispered, "If you get to taste me, it's only fair..."

_God,_ she wanted more.

She watched more pre-cum pool, almost in direct response to her desire. Hell, who was she kidding. It probably was in direct response to what she wanted.

"You're right. Except, I haven't really tasted you. Not yet," he bit back, and _then he ripped off her shorts and panties in one swoop._

_Fuck._

She couldn't even think any more. All she knew was that his bare dick was inches away from her open legs and he was talking about _putting his mouth on her vagina_ and oh-my-god-fuck-yes. He oozed sex, all the fucking time, and she was tired of wanting and wanting and never having.

And then he dipped his head down and lapped at her vagina like it was candy.

She was pretty sure she was seeing stars at this point.

"Ohh, god Bells. So, so fucking sweet..." He ran his tongue along her clit, then dipped it back down into her entrance and dutifully collected the fluid there, then brought it back up to her clit again.

"Not as good as yours," she argued, running her hand through his hair. He shook his head.

"Taste for yourself," he protested, and leaned up and pressed his mouth against hers.

Why that turned her on beyond belief, she didn't know. She ran her tongue along his lips and his mouth, collecting every part of herself from him.

She _was_ pretty good.

When he pulled back, his eyes were a curious honey brown, rather than their usual inky black or bright gold. He pried her legs open wider. "Bells," he started, "that shit was so hot. And I want you to tell me if you feel uncomfortable, and if you want to stop, ok? Because we don't have to go any further than this," he said firmly.

She nodded, then bit her lip again.

"What's wrong, baby?"

"I want to go as far as you want to go. But I want to go there with _you_, ok?" She touched his brow, right over his eyes.

"I want to go there with _you_, too. But they've both waited so long..."

She furrowed her brow in confusion, and he smiled. When he got up, she whimpered in protest, but then he picked her up and carried her, bridal style, to her mirror.

She gasped at the light hazel eyes she saw staring back at her. His matching ones twinkled before he bent and kissed her hair gently.

"So, maybe... we can all go there together?"

She couldn't work her mouth to respond, so she just nodded.

#^$&#*/*/*


End file.
